KEY POINTS
- Qatar says “all parties are pushing towards reaching an agreement” to end the Gaza war under Trump’s peace plan.
- Doha confirmed the Gaza peace plan had been modified by Israel before being unveiled by President Trump.
- Qatar stresses the future of Gaza must remain in Palestinian hands, free from external imposition.
- Hamas spokesperson says the group is working to “surmount all obstacles” to reach an agreement.
- Hamas’s key demands include a permanent ceasefire, full Israeli withdrawal, unrestricted aid, and a fair prisoner swap.
- Netanyahu accused of deliberately obstructing past and current ceasefire negotiations.
DOHA/CAIRO: Qatar said on Tuesday that “all parties are pushing towards reaching an agreement” to end the war in Gaza under US President Donald Trump’s 20-point peace plan, as indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas continued in Egypt under international mediation.
The talks, held in the Red Sea resort city of Sharm El Sheikh, included representatives from Egypt, the United States, and Qatar, with mediators seeking to overcome remaining obstacles to a ceasefire and the release of hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners.
Majed al-Ansari, spokesperson for Qatar’s Foreign Ministry, said the Cairo talks included “four hours of intense and meticulous talks to identify bottlenecks or obstacles” in implementing a ceasefire, the handover of captives, and the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza.
“Many details require agreements on implementation — including the handover of captives, release of Palestinian prisoners, and the entry of aid,” al-Ansari said. “The meetings continue. All parties are pushing towards reaching an agreement.”
Israel should have already ceased fire
The spokesperson said that “Israel should have already ceased fire” in Gaza in line with President Trump’s proposed plan, adding that “if statements made by the Israeli prime minister about adherence to the Trump plan were true, the ceasefire should already be in place.”
The Qatari spokesman emphasised that the future of Gaza must remain in Palestinian hands, noting that while reconstruction would need international support, “Palestinian affairs must remain in the hands of Palestinians who have the liberty and freedom to determine their future.”
Al-Ansari also confirmed that Israel had modified elements of Trump’s peace plan presented earlier to Arab and Muslim leaders before it was unveiled publicly by President Trump.
“Some of the remarks were adopted, others were not,” he said. “We are aware that any proposal cannot satisfy all parties, but we all share the goal of ending this genocidal war.”
The indirect talks between Israel and Hamas resumed in Egypt as the war in Gaza enters its third year amid staggering civilian losses and a worsening humanitarian collapse.
Hamas: ‘We seek to surmount all obstacles’
Meanwhile, Hamas spokesperson Fawzi Barhoum, cited by Al Jazeera, said the Palestinian group’s delegation in Cairo was working to “overcome all obstacles” to achieve a deal that meets “the aspirations of our people in Gaza.”
He outlined Hamas’s main demands: a permanent and comprehensive ceasefire, the complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, the unrestricted entry of humanitarian aid, the return of displaced people, and the start of a reconstruction process overseen by a Palestinian national body of technocrats.
Barhoum also called for a fair prisoner exchange deal and accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of deliberately obstructing past and current rounds of talks.
“Despite brutal military force, unlimited support, and full American partnership in this war of extermination, they have not and will not succeed in achieving a false image of victory,” he said.
Western leaders call for ceasefire
Marking two years since the war began, Western leaders renewed calls for a ceasefire and the release of hostages held in Gaza.
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer vowed to continue “working with international partners until all the hostages are home and there is lasting peace.”
France’s President Emmanuel Macron said “the release of all hostages and a ceasefire must take place without delay.”
Germany’s Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Italy’s Giorgia Meloni, and EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen all backed Trump’s plan as a “real opportunity” for peace, urging both sides to seize the moment.
Israel continues attacks despite talks
Israeli airstrikes continued to pound parts of Gaza City even as talks proceeded. Gaza health authorities said at least 19 people were killed in the past 24 hours — about a third of the daily toll in recent weeks, when Israel mounted one of its most intense offensives.
A senior Israeli security source, cited by Al Jazeera, said talks were initially focusing on the release of hostages, with troop withdrawals limited for now to a “yellow line” buffer zone in Gaza. Further withdrawals, he said, would depend on Hamas meeting key conditions.
The talks, held in Sharm El Sheikh with Egyptian, Qatari and US mediation, began on the eve of the second anniversary of the Hamas-led attack on Israel on 7 October 2023.
Gaza death toll rises to 67,173
Since October 2023, Israel’s bombardment campaign in Gaza has killed at least 67,173 Palestinians — including over 20,000 children and 28,000 women — and nearly 170,000 wounded, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. The UN says the real figures may be even higher.
The Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS) reports that 29 of its staff have been killed in Israeli attacks while performing medical duties. Hospitals and ambulances have been repeatedly targeted, with 25 of Gaza’s 38 hospitals are completely out of service and most of the rest barely functioning.
The Health Ministry says 1,701 medical personnel have been killed and 362 detained, while 103 of 157 primary healthcare centres have been destroyed.
“Israel is carrying out a health genocide in Gaza,” the ministry said, describing the collapse of medical services as “a deliberate destruction of the foundation of human existence.”
Famine in Gaza
The UN formally declared famine in parts of Gaza in late August. According to Gaza’s Health Ministry, at least 460 Palestinians, including 154 children, have died of hunger.
More than 51,000 children under five suffer from severe malnutrition, while hospital bed occupancy has reached 225%, the ministry said.
In September, the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry concluded that Israel has committed genocide in Gaza, finding evidence of four of the five acts listed under the 1948 Genocide Convention.
It called on Israel to end its policy of starvation, lift the siege, and ensure unrestricted humanitarian access.
Ramy Abdu, chair of the Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor, said the famine was “not a natural disaster but a policy of using food and water as weapons of war and tools of genocide.” He added: “Starvation as a weapon against civilians is a war crime.”
UN and aid agencies demand end to war
The UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) marked two years of war with an urgent call for a ceasefire.
“Two years of war in Gaza. Two years too long,” the agency said on X (formerly Twitter). “It’s time for a ceasefire now.”
UNRWA called for the release of all hostages and Palestinian detainees and for Israel to lift its siege to allow a “standard flow of humanitarian aid and commercial supplies” through a UN-supervised mechanism.
Earlier, Trump told reporters at the White House that there was “a really good chance” of a breakthrough, describing the plan as “the closest the sides have come yet to ending this devastating conflict.”
