Blinken says ceasefire deal should be a ‘no-brainer’ for Hamas
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said that the “only thing standing between the people of Gaza and a ceasefire is Hamas” and a deal with Israel should be a “no-brainer” for the group.
“We wait to see whether, in effect, they can take yes for an answer on the ceasefire and release of hostages,” Blinken said late on Friday, speaking at the McCain Institute’s Sedona Forum in Arizona. “But maybe something else is going on [with Hamas], and we’ll have a better picture of that in the coming days,” he said.
Blinken added that negotiations with Hamas are complicated by the fact that the “ultimate decision-makers” are members of the group in Gaza, with whom mediators have no direct contact.
Unnamed Israeli official says army will move ahead with Rafah invasion: Report
Israeli news media are reporting that Israel will not agree to end the war and that the army will go through with its planned incursion into Rafah.
“Contrary to publications, Israel will not agree to the end of the war – the [Israeli army] will enter Rafah whether or not there is a truce for the release of our hostages,” Israel’s Army Radio said on X, quoting a “political source”.
Channel 12 News also posted on X a quote from a “political official” responding to reports of progress in the ceasefire negotiations: “We will not agree to the end of the war, we will enter Rafah.”
A tent camp housing Palestinians displaced by the Israeli offensive is seen in Rafah
Hamas says Rafah one of ‘key elements’ of ceasefire talks
Osama Hamdan, a Hamas senior spokesman, says ceasefire talks mediated by Qatar and Egypt are still ongoing.
“And it’s clear that we are moving forward. There are some good points,” Hamdan told Al Jazeera. “But till now, we are still talking about the main issue, which is the complete ceasefire and complete withdrawal from Gaza. We hope to find some good and positive answers today.”
Hamdan said one of the “key elements” discussed is Netanyahu’s aim of sending the army into Rafah.
“Unfortunately, there was a clear statement from Netanyahu saying that regardless to what may happen, if there was a ceasefire or not, he will continue the attack,” he said. “That means there will be no ceasefire, and that means that the attack will be continued, which is against what we are discussing.”
“At least we want to know exactly what does it mean, his statement, and the reaction from the mediators. Our understanding that any achievement for a ceasefire means that there will be no more attacks against Gaza and Rafah,” he added.
Hamas: If US decides ‘that this must stop, it will happen’
Osama Hamdan says that during three months of negotiations to end Israel’s war on Gaza, there have been “some forward steps”.
“I think the mediators, our brothers in Egypt and Qatar, they are doing a good job. This is why we are still hoping to achieve the main goal, a complete ceasefire and withdrawal from Gaza,” he said.
However, Hamdan said the war could end immediately if the US decided it should.
“We have to talk about the real position of the United States because that is the main issue which will affect the position of the Israelis, and mainly Netanyahu,” Hamdan told Al Jazeera. “If the United States administration has said clearly to Netanyahu, enough is enough… I assure you that will happen.”
Qatari, Egyptian teams are working out details of a potential deal: Sources
Sources have confirmed to us that there is progress in the talks, and a Qatari technical team is working out the details of a potential deal with the Egyptians. They are both key mediators, and usually technical teams are indications that we are moving to the operational aspect of an agreement.
There are phases in this agreement, and they will try to pin down the details of those phases.
Hamas has been very much concerned about the implementation of the agreement. The talks have been focused on convincing Hamas that they have to stay away from talking about a permanent ceasefire for phase one, because it is not going to happen.
Instead, Hamas has been asking for a prolonged ceasefire – something more than a month – that would give a sense of normal that could convince the international community to say, “We need to have a deal.”
I have covered the talks for the last six or seven months, and this is the first time since December that I am getting a sense from the key mediators that they believe there might be a significant breakthrough.
US guaranteeing Israel’s truce commitments could get a deal done
How do we get to a ceasefire agreement as Netanyahu continues to say he’ll be attacking Rafah come what may – deal or no deal – something that is anathema to Hamas, that it will never accept?
And what of Hamas’s basic demand that Israeli forces eventually withdraw from Gaza, people returning home, and reconstruction?
If the United States guarantees Israel’s pledges, that means the clash of the wills is going to be between Biden and Netanyahu. It will be up to Washington to make sure those Israeli pledges are respected.
And according to Hamas spokesman Osama Hamdan’s earlier comments to Al Jazeera, this could be enough to get a deal done.
Full statement from Hamas’s Osama Hamdan on ongoing truce talks
“We are still talking about the main issues, which are the complete ceasefire and complete withdrawal [of Israel] from Gaza. We hope we can find some positive answers today.
“Unfortunately, there was a clear statement from Netanyahu saying regardless of any ceasefire or not he’ll continue the attack against Rafah – which means there will be no ceasefire. Our understanding to achieve a ceasefire means there will be no more attacks anywhere in Gaza, including Rafah.
“We have to talk about the real position of the United States because that is the main issue that will affect the position of the Israelis, mainly Netanyahu. Guarantees are important, but we need a clear statement that clarifies the positions of each side. Because as we all know, the Israelis are trying every time to get out of their commitments."
What are Israeli officials saying about truce talks?
While there has been signs of optimism over the latest proposal after months of back-and-forth on a deal, both Israel and Hamas appear to be holding the line on their terms.
One Israeli source, who spoke anonymously, told AFP news agency that Hamas’s continued demand for a lasting ceasefire is stymying prospects of reaching a truce. “So far, Hamas has not given up its demand to end the war, thus thwarting the possibility of reaching an agreement.”
The official said a sign of progress in talks would be if Israel sent a delegation led by the Mossad chief David Barnea to Cairo. Currently, CIA chief William Burns is in Cairo meeting Egyptian mediators who are talking with a Hamas team.
Another unnamed Israeli official signaled the country’s core position remains unchanged, saying “Israel will under no circumstances agree to ending the war as part of a deal to free our hostages.”
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