🔗 Share this article

News Agency

Mediated discussions working toward a lasting settlement on a Trump administration initiative to end the war in Gaza have started in the Egyptian city of Sharm El-Sheikh.

Local and international officials have stated that the discussions are centered around "establishing the groundwork" for a potential swap that would see the freeing of all Israeli hostages in return for a number of detained Palestinians.

The group stated it accepts the peace plan proposals to some extent, but has failed to address several key demands - such as its disarmament and governance position in Gaza.

Israel's prime minister said on Saturday that he anticipated declaring the freeing of detained individuals "in the coming days"

Historical Framework

The talks, which will involve Egyptian and Qatari officials conducting mediation with delegations from both Israel and Hamas in isolation, take place on the eve of the two-year mark of the military operation on southern Israel on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 individuals were taken hostage.

The armed forces launched a campaign in Gaza in response. Since then, 67,160 have been lost their lives by Israeli military operations in Gaza, based on data from the region's local health authorities.

Proposal Framework

The comprehensive proposal, which has been agreed upon by American leadership and the Netanyahu government, outlines an quick halt to fighting and the freeing of 48 hostages, only a portion are considered alive, in return for hundreds of incarcerated individuals.

The framework requires that once both sides accept the initiative "complete assistance will be quickly dispatched into the conflict zone"

It also declares that the militant group would have no involvement in governing Gaza, and it leaves the door open an independent Palestinian nation.

Latest Updates

Recently, Hamas responded to the proposal in a declaration, in which the group consented "to release all detainees, both alive and killed, according to the transfer mechanism specified by the US initiative" - if the proper conditions for the transfers are satisfied.

It did not specifically mention or accept the comprehensive proposal but said it "renews its agreement to relinquish the management of the conflict zone to a Palestinian body of technocrats, based on local agreement and Arab and Islamic support"

The announcement failed to address of one of the essential conditions of the initiative – that the organization consent to its disarmament and to ceasing political participation in the governance of Gaza.

International Response

Many Palestinians characterized the group's reaction to the peace plan as unexpected, after days of signals that the organization was preparing to reject or at least substantially modify its acceptance of the American initiative.

Alternatively, the organization refrained from including its traditional "red lines" in the official statement, a decision many consider a sign of external pressure.

Global and local representatives have endorsed the plan. The local administration, which administers areas of the disputed regions, has described the Trump administration actions as "genuine and committed"

The Islamic Republic - which has been one of the organization's key backers for an extended period - has also currently expressed its support for Trump's Gaza peace plan.

Current Situation

Military strikes continued in several parts of the Palestinian territory on the beginning of the week prior to the talks beginning.

Israeli forces is implementing an combat campaign in the urban area, which it has said is designed to securing the release of the outstanding captives.

A spokesperson, spokesman for Gaza's Hamas-run civil defence, reported that "humanitarian convoys have been permitted entry to the metropolitan area since the offensive began four weeks ago"

"Victims remain we cannot retrieve from areas under defense force authority" he said.

Hundreds of thousands of Gaza City have been compelled to evacuate after the Israeli military ordered evacuations to a specified safe zone in the lower territory, but further countless people are thought to have stayed.

The defense representative has cautioned that those who persist during the military operation would be "militants and their backers"

In the recent period, 21 individuals have been lost their lives in Gaza and a additional 96 harmed, the local medical authorities said in its current assessment.

Foreign correspondents have been restricted by Israeli authorities from visiting the conflict zone without supervision since the start of the hostilities, making confirming reports from all parties challenging.