High-level ceasefire talks appeared to gain momentum Monday as Arab and U.S. mediators pushed for an agreement to end the fighting in Gaza and release hostages held by Hamas before the President-elect Donald J. Trump takes office on January 20.
It remains unclear whether the parties have reached a resolution on central disputes that proved intractable in previous rounds of negotiations, but officials briefed on the negotiations have expressed cautious optimism in recent days that a deal could be reached. agreement.
For months, repeated rounds of negotiations raised hopes that were dashed days later, with Israel and Hamas blaming each other for the impasse.
If a deal is reached, it would bring some relief to Palestinians in Gaza, who have endured miserable conditions in displacement camps and Israel’s relentless bombing, and to the families of hostages taken from Israel, who have suffered for months wondering about the fate of their loved ones.
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Hamas leaders want to end the war in Gaza, which has severely weakened the group’s military wing and government, displaced nearly two million people and reduced cities to rubble. Hamas officials also said they wanted a complete Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, the return of displaced people from the south of the enclave to the north, the entry of reconstruction materials and the freedom of Palestinian prisoners. On Monday, Hamas said in a statement that Palestinian prisoners would soon be released.
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The sides have long discussed a deal that would include three steps that Arab and U.S. officials hope will lead to an end to the war.
What are the biggest obstacles?
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A major obstacle to the success of the talks has been the permanence of the ceasefire. While Hamas has demanded a comprehensive end to the war, Mr. Netanyahu has said he wants a “partial” deal that would allow Israel to resume the war after freeing the hostages.
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Israel demands vague language in the text of a deal that leaves room for a resumption of fighting at some point, according to a Palestinian close to the matter and two Israeli officials. Mr Netanyahu fears his right-wing coalition partners could overthrow his government and jeopardize his political future if he accepts a deal ending the war in Gaza, analysts say.
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In a post Monday, Bezalel Smotrich, Israel’s Finance Minister, called the “emerging deal” a “national security catastrophe” for Israel and said he would not support it.
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Hamas has not suggested it would be willing to compromise on its demand to end the war. Osama Hamdan, a senior Hamas official, told a rally in Algeria last week that there must be “an absolute end to aggression.”
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Another obstacle is the extent to which Israel will be allowed to carry out military operations in the Gaza Strip during the first phase of a deal. Israel wanted the ability to maneuver up to 1.5 kilometers, or about a mile, inside Gaza, said the two Israeli military officials and the Palestinian familiar with the matter. Hamas wanted incursions to be limited to 500 meters from the border, according to the Palestinian.
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Israeli officials, however, said Israel and Hamas were now close to a compromise that would allow Israel to carry out military operations in the first phase of the deal up to one kilometer inside Gaza, or nearly two-thirds of a mile.
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Israel demanded from Hamas a list of hostages still alive. Without that, Israeli officials say, there can be no agreement on how many Palestinian prisoners Israel would be willing to release in exchange. As of Sunday morning, Israel had not received such a list, according to one of the officials familiar with the matter.
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Last week, Hamas representatives indicated that the group had approved an Israeli list of 34 hostages who will be released in the first stage of a deal, but it does not specify how many of them are alive.
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But Hamas agreed to Israel’s request to include 11 disputed individuals on the list of hostages who will be released in the first phase of a deal. Israel considers them civilians, but Hamas considers them soldiers, according to both Israeli and Palestinian officials. Israel is weighing Hamas’ demand that the 11 be treated as soldiers who would be exchanged for a higher number of Palestinian prisoners than those released for civilian hostages.
Isabelle Kershner contributed to the reporting of this article.
