The Qatari Prime Minister called Hamas’s overall “positive” reaction to the draft agreement on the release of Israeli hostages.
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The Qatari Prime Minister called Hamas’s overall “positive” reaction to the draft agreement on the release of Israeli hostages. Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani made this statement at a press conference during the visit of US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to the country.
Blinken arrived in Qatar and met as part of a Middle East tour aimed at achieving a ceasefire in the war between Israel and Hamas. The visit comes amid growing concern in Cairo over Israel’s stated intentions to spread the fighting in Gaza to areas along the Egyptian border that are crowded with displaced Palestinians.
“We have received a response from Hamas on the general framework of the agreement, – said Tani. – There are some criticisms in their response, but overall it is positive.”
A little later, Hamas confirmed the transmission of a response to Qatar and Egypt regarding the framework agreement on the release of Israeli hostages. Hamas confirmed that it had a positive attitude towards the draft agreement.
In turn, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that Washington is studying Hamas’s response to the agreement, according to which the radicals must release hostages in exchange for a long pause in hostilities in Gaza and the release of Palestinian prisoners.
Blinken told a news conference in Qatar that he would discuss Hamas’ response with Israeli officials during a visit to the country tomorrow.
“There is still a lot of work to be done, but we still believe that an agreement is possible and indeed necessary.” Blinken said.
Qatar is mediating the talks, working with the US and Egypt to reach an agreement that would include a long-term stop in fighting in exchange for the release of more than 100 hostages still held by Hamas.
Blinken confirmed that officials had received Hamas’s response and said he would brief Israeli leaders during his visit to the country on Wednesday.
Earlier, Israel’s defense minister said the IDF offensive would eventually reach the city of Rafah on the Egyptian border, where more than half of Gaza’s 2.3 million residents had sought refuge and now live in increasingly dire conditions.
Blinken, who met with Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi in Cairo on Tuesday, has repeatedly said Palestinians should not be pushed out of the Gaza Strip.
Egypt has warned that the deployment of Israeli troops along the border would jeopardize the peace treaty signed by the two countries more than 40 years ago. Egypt fears that increased fighting in the Rafah area could push fearful Palestinian civilians across the border. Egypt has said it intends to prevent this scenario.
UN humanitarian observers said on Tuesday that Israeli evacuation orders now cover two-thirds of Gaza, pushing thousands of people into border areas every day.
In Khan Yunis on Tuesday, Israeli airstrikes killed all members of one family. Their bodies were taken to the morgue at Al-Aqsa Hospital in the city of Deir al-Balah.
According to the Gaza Ministry of Health, the number of Palestinians killed during the 4-month war has reached 27,478. Human rights groups accuse Israel of using disproportionate force.
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2024-02-06 23:32:58
