On Saturday evening, Israeli Channel 12 disclosed the details of the “proposal” that was presented by the United States during the indirect negotiations in Doha, for a ceasefire in Gaza and a prisoner-swap deal.
This American “offer” reportedly aims to tackle the primary issues concerning the prisoner exchange agreement and the ceasefire, specifying the number of prisoners to be released in the initial phase, along with their names and the sequence of their release.
Under the current US proposal, the release of women and female soldiers will take precedence, prioritizing living prisoners.
Additionally, Avera Mengistu and Hisham al-Sayed are slated for release in the first phase of the humanitarian agreement.
The proposal also outlines a list of Palestinian prisoners who will be exchanged for each Israeli prisoner, which includes 47 individuals who were previously released in the Shalit deal and have since been rearrested.
Furthermore, the understandings regarding the presence and operations of Israeli military forces in various regions of the Gaza Strip during the 42-day truce and ceasefire have been elaborated upon.
An Israeli delegation is anticipated to travel to Cairo tomorrow, where it will collaborate with American and Egyptian teams to finalize security arrangements along the Philadelphi corridor and to discuss the reopening of the Rafah crossing. Hamas has made it clear to mediators that it will not concede on this matter unless Israel alters its stance.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is also expected to arrive in Tel Aviv, on Sunday, to engage in discussions with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu regarding the outstanding issues, particularly the relocation of Gaza residents to the northern part of the Strip.
Netanyahu has allegedly proposed a more flexible approach to this issue under pressure from the United States; however, no agreement has been reached thus far, resulting in this matter being excluded from the American settlement document.
Another summit is anticipated to take place in Cairo by the end of next week, either on Wednesday or Thursday.
The United States intends to announce the deal, as American officials believe that such a declaration will fulfill the secondary objective of the agreement, which is to dissuade Iran and Hezbollah from “attacking Israel,” a situation that is currently on hold.
Yahia Sinwar, the leader of Hamas’s political bureau, has yet to respond and may not be fully apprised of all the particulars of the agreements and discussions.
Even if Hamas representatives in Doha adopt a more conciliatory approach, this may ultimately conflict with the reality of the situation, as Sinwar could have a different opinion or stance, depending on the nature of this proposal, and the developments on the ground.
On Friday, Hamas said it is abundantly clear that Israel is not interested in an agreement and accused Tel Aviv of continuing the prevarication and obstruction of the indirect talks, and of adding new preconditions to obstruct the agreement.
It is worth mentioning that last month, Israel assassinated the political leader of Hamas, Isamel Haniyya, in the Iranian capital, Tehran.
On April 10, 2024, on the first day of the Al-Fitr Muslim feast that marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan, an Israeli drone fired a missile at a car carrying members of Haniyya’s family in the Shati’ refugee camp, in Gaza City, killing three of his sons, Hazem, Amir and Mohammad, and two of his grandchildren.
It is worth mentioning that, on November 21, 2023, the army killed Haniyya’s oldest grandson, Jamal Mohmmad Haniyya, and his daughter. On November 10, the army killed Haniyya’s grandchild, Ro’a Hammad, after firing missiles at their homes.
On Saturday evening, the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reported that the negotiating team updated him on the progress of the Doha discussions concerning the prisoner-swap agreement.
Furthermore, it was noted that the negotiating team conveyed a sense of “cautious optimism” regarding the potential advancement of the deal based on Washington’s proposal, with the office expressing hope that pressure from Washington and the mediators would compel Hamas to comply.
There has been no mention, at least openly, of the fate of dozens of senior political leaders, who were abducted and imprisoned by Israel many years ago, including Fateh leader Marwan Barghouthi, and PFLP political bureau head, Ahmad Sa’adat, who are sentenced to life terms in prison, along with dozens of other detainees, including scores of political leaders, who are also serving life terms, in addition to the dozens of imprisoned women and children.
Earlier in August, the number of Palestinian detainees in Israeli prisons reached about 9.900, including 3432 held under arbitrary Administrative Detention orders without charges or trial, 86 women, including 23 under Administrative Detention, and 250 children.
However, this number does not include the Palestinians who were abducted in Gaza; while Israel said it has 1.584 detainees, this number does not include all Gaza Strip detainees, especially those who are held in prison camps and interrogation facilities that are run by the Israeli army and not the prison authority, in addition to the number of detainees who were tortured to death or died in captivity.
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On the ground in Gaza, the Israeli army is ongoing with the genocide and bombing of various parts of the devastated, destroyed, besieged, and starved coastal enclave, bringing the number of slain Palestinians to more than 40.074, among them more than 16.365 children, 11.012 women, 885 medical staff, 79 Civil Defense, and 203 UNRWA Staff.
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At least 92,537, mostly children, women, and elderly have been injured, while thousands (About 10.000) of victims are still under the rubble and on the bombarded roads, as medics remain unable to reach them, since October 7, 2023.
In the West Bank, Israeli soldiers and paramilitary colonizers have killed 635 Palestinians, (21 killed by paramilitary colonizers, and 158 assassinated by the army) including 147 children, and injured more than 5.400, since October 7.
