Five days after accepting a crucial component of an American plan to end the nine-month-old conflict in Gaza, Hamas is awaiting an answer from Israel over its proposal for a ceasefire, according to two officials from the Palestinian organization on Sunday.
U.S. President Joe Biden presented the three-phase proposal for the Palestinian enclave at the end of May. Qatar and Egypt are serving as intermediaries in this arrangement. Approximately 120 Israeli captives are being held by Hamas; its goal is to put an end to the war.
Benjamin Netanyahu, the prime minister of Israel, stated that talks will resume on this week but did not provide a specific date. Ehab Al-Ghussein, the deputy minister of labor nominated by Hamas, and three other individuals were killed by an Israeli air attack later in the day in a church-run school in western Gaza City that was providing shelter to Muslim and Christian families, according to information released by the Civil Emergency Service and Hamas media.
The Israeli army declared that it would investigate the information. An Israeli strike in May had already claimed the lives of Ghussein’s wife and children.
The main condition made by Hamas, the group in charge of Gaza, was that Israel promise to sign a deal only if it agreed to a long-term truce.
A Palestinian official involved in peace negotiations told the media that if Israel accepts the plan, it might result in a framework agreement that would put an end to the conflict. According to a person with knowledge of the situation, U.S. Central Intelligence Agency Director William Burns will visit Qatar this week for talks.
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Nine months ago, on October 7, Hamas-led fighters launched the greatest offensive in Israel’s history against southern Israel from Gaza, killing 1,200 people and seizing some 250 hostages. This strike set off the conflict. Gaza health officials report that Israel’s military assault has killed over 38,000 Palestinians, and the coastal enclave has mostly collapsed into rubble.
In a post on X, the U.N. agency for Palestinians, UNRWA, described the situation as being more and more terrible, writing that “families continue to face forced displacement, massive destruction, and constant fear.”
“Diseases are increasing, there is a shortage of necessities, and the heat is oppressive.”