GAZA CEASEFIRE NEGOTIATIONS are to continue today in Qatar, for a second day, as more pressure mounts on parties to reach an agreement after the death toll in the Palestinian enclave reached a new, harrowing high.

According to the health ministry in Gaza yesterday, 40,005 people have now been killed in the conflict which began as a retaliatory offensive by Israel to the 7 October attack. Global leaders, including the UN, have deplored the “grim milestone”.

No deal was reached yesterday, in the first day of another round of truce talks which have been taking place since December last year. Hamas negotiators announced that they will not be attending the fresh conference as they say they have already agreed to the terms.

Israel are under mounting international pressure to agree to the deal, which the United States’ claims Tel Aviv drafted, particularly following the news of the devastating death toll and over concerns that a wider conflict in the region is imminent.

Despite claiming that it would attack areas of Israel following the assassination of two high-ranking members of Hamas and Hezbollah, which included Hamas’ lead peace negotiator, Iran has yet to carry out such attack.

It is believed by many in the region that the Iranian Government are lying and waiting in case a ceasefire deal is brokered in Doha in the coming days before pushing ahead with an attack.

US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters in Washington D.C yesterday that there was a “promising start” to discussions in Qatar but acknowledged: “There remains a lot of work to do.”

Hamas has demanded the implementation of a ceasefire plan and prisoner-hostage swap as laid out on 31 May by US President Joe Biden. It would also see both Israel and Hamas leave Gaza for good.

The very next day, Israel said no deal would be agreed until Hamas was eradicated, despite the fact that it would have to leave Gaza and disband it operations under the agreement set out by Tel Aviv.

“Any agreement must achieve a comprehensive ceasefire, a complete (Israeli) withdrawal from Gaza, (and) the return of the displaced,” Hamas official Hossam Badran said.

Israeli negotiators will continue discussions today with mediators Qatar and also involves US Central Intelligence Agency director William Burns. 

With reporting from © AFP 2024