Demonstrators gather as Benjamin Netanyahu arrives at the District Court in <span>Tel Aviv</span> to take the stand in his corruption trial on December 10, 2024 [Mostafa Alkharouf/Anadolu via Getty Images]
AL JAZEERA | Published December 14, 2024
Rumours that Israeli prime minister may finally put his name to an agreement with Hamas abound, but why now?
Indications that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu could be ready to agree to end the assault on Gaza that has killed 44,800 people – with thousands more lost under the rubble and presumed dead – could raise hopes of an end to the war.
After meeting with Netanyahu this week, United States National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said he “got the sense” Netanyahu was “ready to do a deal”. Until now, Netanyahu has been seen as blocking any chances of a ceasefire.
ing signed. Documents he used to justify his decision to continue bombing Gaza were later found by Israeli authorities to have been forged.
Since then, the International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued arrest warrants for both men for war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Gaza since the war began in October 2023.
On Wednesday, the UN General Assembly (UNGA) passed a resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and expressing support for the work of UNRWA (UN’s agency for Palestinian refugees), which Israel banned from operating in Israel and the Palestinian territory.
What would a ceasefire mean for people in Gaza?
Everything, particularly for those in the north.
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SOURCE: www.aljazeera.com
RELATED: Netanyahu tells Sullivan he wants Gaza hostage and ceasefire deal
Photo: Abir Sultan/POOL/AFP via Getty Images
AXIOS | Published December 14, 2024
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan on Thursday that he wants to conclude the Gaza hostage and ceasefire deal, Israeli and U.S. officials said.
Why it matters: There are 100 hostages still being held in Gaza, including seven Americans.
- Israeli intelligence services believe roughly half of the hostages are still alive.
- Sullivan said at a press conference in Tel Aviv Thursday that the U.S. believes three of the Americans held in Gaza — Edan Alexander, Keith Siegel and Sagui Dekel-Chen — are still alive.
Driving the news: Two weeks ago, Israel gave Hamas an updated proposal for a deal to release some of the remaining 100 hostages held by Hamas and begin a ceasefire in Gaza.
- Since then, Qatari and Egyptian mediators have been trying to bridge the gaps between the parties. Turkey has also been involved in the efforts.
- The director of the Israeli Mossad, David Barnea, met with Qatar’s prime minister in Doha on Wednesday for negotiations, as Axios first reported.
- A senior Israeli official said Thursday that progress was made during Barnea’s talks in Doha and that the Mossad director returned from Qatar with “a positive feeling that a deal is possible.”
Behind the scenes: Sullivan met in Tel Aviv with Netanyahu and his team, and later had another meeting with the heads of the Mossad and Shin Bet intelligence agencies, who are in charge of the negotiations.
- Netanyahu stressed to Sullivan that he is ready to implement the hostage and ceasefire deal immediately if Hamas “green lights” it, a senior Israeli official told Axios.
- “I got the sense from the prime minister he is ready to do a deal,” Sullivan said at the press conference. “The prime minister indicated he wants to get it done.”
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SOURCE: www.axios.com
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