GAZA: Israel and Palestinian movement Hamas have accused each other of undermining negotiations for a truce in Gaza and a captive release deal, although the talks have not collapsed.
Without explicitly rejecting the draft deal, Hamas reiterated its long-standing demands for a permanent ceasefire and the full withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip, which Israeli officials have repeatedly opposed.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has instead reiterated his determination to launch a ground invasion of Rafah, the last city in Gaza yet to face such a fate and which Israel insists is Hamas's last major holdout.
On Saturday, Netanyahu accused the Palestinian group of being the "only obstacle" to a deal that would free the captives still held by Gaza groups.
"The cabinet and the security forces are united in their opposition to these unfounded demands," he said, adding that Hamas "has refused any deal and any compromise proposal".
On Sunday, Israel's Mossad spy agency said in a statement released by Netanyahu's office that Hamas had rejected the proposal, and said it "proves" that Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar "does not want a humanitarian deal and the return of the captives".
Despite the apparent gulf between the two sides, the talks, mediated by Egypt, the United States and Qatar, are ongoing in the Egyptian capital.
"The negotiations are not at a standstill" but the mediators will have to go back to the drawing board, said Hasni Abidi of CERMAM, a Geneva-based think tank specialising in the Mediterranean and the Arab world. A framework being circulated in Cairo would halt fighting for six weeks and see the exchange of about 40 captives for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, as well as more aid deliveries into the besieged Gaza Strip.
A source said that, ultimately, later stages of the ceasefire would see all captives released, Israel withdrawing all its forces from Gaza, the lifting of the siege and the reconstruction of the territory.
However, so far every attempt to negotiate a durable ceasefire in the six-month-long war has failed.
In November, a seven-day truce enabled the exchange of 80 captives for 240 Palestinian prisoners, as well as 25 captives freed outside of the truce mechanism.
The war broke out with Hamas's October 7 attack on southern Israel, which resulted in the deaths of 1,170 people, according to Israeli figures.
Israel's retaliatory attack has killed at least 33,729 people, mostly women and children, according to the health ministry in the territory. — AFP
Oman Observer is now on the WhatsApp channel. Click here
