Potential hurdles litter road as Israel and Hamas head to Gaza peace talks

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Delegations from Hamas, Israel and the United States are owed to convene successful Egypt for talks connected US President Donald Trump’s connection to extremity the warfare successful Gaza.

Indirect negotiations betwixt Israel and Hamas implicit the 20-point program are owed to statesman successful Egypt’s Red Sea edifice of Sharm el-Sheikh connected Monday.

The talks, which travel connected the eve of the 2nd day of the Hamas attacks connected Israel that led to the war, person raised hopes that the devastating conflict, which has killed tens of thousands successful Gaza, could soon end. But astatine the aforesaid time, determination are plentifulness of imaginable obstacles to sealing a deal.

Trump has insisted that some sides are connected committee with his bid model and has called for the negotiations to “move fast” successful reaching an agreement.

Despite the nonaccomplishment of respective initiatives to effort to extremity the conflict, including 2 little ceasefires that collapsed, the bombardment of Gaza, which has present killed astatine slightest 67,160 people, wounded 169,679, and pushed the enclave’s 2 cardinal oregon truthful radical towards starvation, Trump said “the archetypal signifier should beryllium completed this week”.

In a station connected his societal media level Truth Social, Trump said determination had been “very affirmative discussions with Hamas” and different governments implicit the play “to merchandise the Hostages, extremity the War successful Gaza but, much importantly, yet person agelong sought bid successful the Middle East”.

“These talks person been precise successful, and proceeding rapidly,” helium said. “I americium asking everyone to determination accelerated … clip is of the essence, oregon monolithic bloodshed volition follow.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu besides appeared to buoy expectations erstwhile helium said the merchandise of the 48 Israeli captives held by Hamas – 20 of whom are believed to beryllium live – could beryllium announced this week.

Under the plan, Hamas would merchandise the captives successful speech for the merchandise of Palestinian prisoners held successful Israeli jails.

Hamas has besides agreed to springiness up powerfulness successful Gaza, portion Israel has agreed to retreat its forces from the enclave.

Lacking details

However, galore issues stay nether the proposal, which lacks details.

There is nary timescale fixed for the disarmament of Hamas, portion a vague notation to the constitution of a Palestinian authorities has enactment galore connected some sides of the woody connected edge.

Meanwhile, with the talks acceptable to commence, Israeli forces person continued their battle successful Gaza.

Seven radical were killed connected Monday morning, including 3 who were seeking humanitarian aid, according to Al Jazeera sources.

Nour Odeh, reporting for Al Jazeera from the Jordanian capital, Amman, said that, for each Trump’s comments talking up the prospects of the plan, important obstacles remained.

“There are a batch of details that could perchance derail” the negotiations, she said.

Potential sticking points see Israel’s insistence that it wants each captives released astatine the aforesaid clip wrong 72 hours.

It besides wants to clasp state to prosecute Hamas, contempt the withdrawal agreement, and insists that its withdrawal lines and timelines person already been set.

“All of these things request to acquisition delicate talks,” she said.

Perhaps reflecting specified doubts, the Israeli media reported connected Monday that the dialog process would present statesman with Hamas representatives speaking with mediators, with Israeli and US representatives not participating until Wednesday.

Trump has demanded that Israel halt bombing Gaza truthful that the talks tin play out, but strikes person continued crossed the territory.

Israeli authorities spokesperson Shosh Bedrosian told reporters connected Sunday that the subject would proceed to enactment for “defensive purposes” and that determination was nary ceasefire successful place.

Speaking connected ABC’s This Week, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio described 2 phases that would hap erstwhile Hamas accepted Trump’s framework.

First, the Israeli captives would beryllium released by Hamas, and past Israel would propulsion backmost successful Gaza to the “yellow line”, wherever its subject was positioned successful August.

Rubio said Hamas should merchandise captives arsenic soon arsenic they were ready, and that Israel’s bombardment needed to extremity truthful they could beryllium released.

Hamas’s aboriginal a sticking point

The question of Hamas’s aboriginal besides looms arsenic a large imaginable obstacle.

Trump’s program calls for Gaza’s demilitarisation and rules retired immoderate aboriginal governing relation for Hamas, though it allows its members to stay if they renounce unit and disarm.

Hamas has responded positively to the plan, saying it was acceptable to negociate the captives’ release, and signifier portion of a “Palestinian nationalist framework” that would signifier Gaza’s future.

However, the imaginable of Hamas remaining successful immoderate signifier has enraged Netanyahu’s far-right conjugation allies. They person threatened to topple the authorities implicit the issue.

“Alongside the important extremity successful and of itself of releasing the hostages, the cardinal extremity of the war, which stems from the October 7 massacre carried retired by Hamas monsters, is that the violent organisation Hamas cannot beryllium allowed to stay successful existence,” National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said successful a societal media post.

He said helium and his party, Otzma Yehudit, had told Netanyahu that they would discontinue the authorities if Hamas continued to beryllium aft the captives’ release.

“We volition not beryllium portion of a nationalist decision that volition bring eternal shame to the world, and that volition go a ticking clip weaponry for the adjacent massacre,” helium said.

However, Yair Lapid, person of the opposition, connected Sunday offered to lend Netanyahu’s authorities enactment to forestall a illness astatine the hands of his “extremist and irresponsible partners” portion the program is negotiated.

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