Qatar, along with Egypt and the United States, has led mediation efforts since the war broke out on October 7.
Palestinian territories:
The Palestinian Action Group wants a “complete and comprehensive ceasefire” in Gaza, a senior Hamas official said on Monday, after mediator Qatar said it was proposing a temporary truce framework.
“What we are discussing first is a comprehensive ceasefire, not a temporary truce,” Tahir Nunu told AFP, adding that once the fighting stopped, “the rest of the details can be discussed”, including the release of hostages.
Qatar, along with Egypt and the United States, has led mediation efforts since a deadly attack by Palestinian operatives on southern Israel on October 7 sparked a war between Israel and Hamas.
Earlier on Monday, Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani said a meeting in Paris between CIA Director Bill Burns and top Israeli and Egyptian security officials agreed on a phased The framework for a truce.
He confirmed that the framework would begin with the release of women and children hostages, and aid would also enter the besieged Gaza Strip.
Sheikh Mohammed said both sides “hope to convey this proposal to Hamas and for them to participate actively and constructively in the process”.
It was unclear on Monday whether Hamas had received Qatar’s offer.
This comes after Qatar mediated a week of fighting in late November that resulted in the release of dozens of Israeli and foreign hostages and the delivery of aid to the besieged Palestinian territory.
The war started by Hamas on October 7, which has entered its fourth month, resulted in the deaths of about 1,140 people in Israel, mostly civilians, according to AFP statistics based on official Israeli data.
Hamas has also seized 250 hostages, of which Israel says about 132 remain in Gaza, including the bodies of at least 28 dead prisoners.
Since then, Israel’s relentless military offensive in Gaza has killed at least 26,637 people, mostly women, children and teenagers, according to the Health Ministry of the Hamas-ruled region.
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