Updated

Aug 17, 2024, 07:17 PM

Published

Aug 17, 2024, 03:06 AM

DOHA/CAIRO – Gaza ceasefire talks in Doha paused on Aug 16 with negotiators to meet again next week seeking an agreement to end fighting between Israel and Hamas and free remaining hostages, as US President Joe Biden said “we’re not there yet”.

In a joint statement, the US, Qatar and Egypt said Washington had presented a new proposal that built on points of agreement over the past week, closing gaps in a way that could allow rapid implementation of a deal.

Mediators would keep working on the proposal, they added.

“The path is now set for that outcome, saving lives, bringing relief to the people of Gaza and de-escalating regional tensions,” the statement said.

On Aug 15, Israel and mediators began the latest round in months of talks to end the war in Gaza, which has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians. Palestinian militant group Hamas was not directly involved, but was kept briefed on the talks.

Senior Hamas official Izzat al-Rishq told Reuters that Israel “did not abide by what was agreed upon” in earlier talks, citing what mediators had told the group.

In Washington, Mr Biden said a deal was “much, much closer” than before the talks began.

A senior US administration official said the latest negotiations were the most productive in months, and negotiators will reconvene next week in Cairo hoping to conclude it.

“It was (the) consensus of all of the participants over the past 48 hours that there’s really a new spirit here to drive it to a conclusion,” the official told reporters on the condition of anonymity.

“The Israeli team that was here was empowered… We made a lot of progress in the number of issues that we’ve been working on,” the official said.

Mr Biden said in a statement that he had directed his negotiating team to put forward the comprehensive bridging proposal presented on Aug 16, which he said offers the basis for a final agreement on a ceasefire and hostage release deal.

The US President said he spoke to Qatar’s Emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who he said expressed strong support for the US proposal.

Teams will remain on the ground to continue technical work and senior officials will convene in Cairo “before the end of the week”, he added.

Mr Biden added that he is sending US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to Israel to reaffirm US commitment to Israel and “to underscore that with the comprehensive ceasefire and hostage release deal now in sight, no one in the region should take actions to undermine this process”.

On the night of Aug 16, Mr Biden told reporters that he was optimistic about the ceasefire deal prospects but warned that it was “far from over”. Asked when a ceasefire would start if a deal is reached, he said: “That remains to be seen.”

Israel has insisted that peace will be possible only if Hamas is destroyed, while Hamas has said it will only accept a permanent ceasefire, not a temporary one.

Other difficulties have included deal sequencing, the number and identity of Palestinian prisoners to be released alongside Israeli hostages, control over the Gaza-Egypt border and free movement for Palestinians inside Gaza.

An Israeli official said its delegation in Doha was heading home, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was expected to meet Mr Blinken on Aug 19.

On Aug 16, Israeli forces pounded targets across tiny, crowded Gaza and issued new orders for people to leave areas it had previously designated as civilian safe zones, saying Hamas had used them to fire mortars and rockets at Israel.

As hundreds of families fled with salvaged belongings, the United Nations called for a week-long pause in fighting for a polio vaccination campaign, with disease spreading among the displaced.

The Palestinian Health Ministry said in a statement that it had detected the first confirmed case of polio in the Gaza Strip.

The latest hostilities in the decades-old Israeli-Palestinian conflict were triggered on Oct 7 when Hamas attacked Israel, killing 1,200 people and taking about 250 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.

Israel’s subsequent military campaign has killed more than 40,000 Palestinians, mostly civilians, according to the Palestinian health authorities. It has also displaced nearly the entire population of 2.3 million, caused a hunger crisis and led to genocide allegations at the World Court that Israel denies.

Israel has said it eliminated 17,000 fighters from Hamas, while adding that the group uses civilians as human shields.

Regional fears

The Israeli delegation included spy chief David Barnea, head of the domestic security service Ronen Bar and the military’s hostages chief Nitzan Alon, defence officials said.

The White House sent Central Intelligence Agency director Bill Burns and US Middle East envoy Brett McGurk. Qatari Prime Minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, and Egypt’s intelligence chief Abbas Kamel were also taking part.

Washington hopes a ceasefire agreement in Gaza can defuse the risk of a wider war. Iran has threatened to retaliate against Israel after the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran on July 31.

The US has dispatched warships, submarines and warplanes to the region to defend Israel and deter potential attackers.

Asked on Aug 16 if Iran would continue to hold off on retaliating against Israel now that the ceasefire talks had been extended, Iran’s mission to the UN in New York said: “We hope so.”

The senior Biden administration official said Washington warned Tehran about conducting a major missile attack against Israel “because the consequences could be quite cataclysmic, particularly for Iran”. REUTERS