Netanyahu putting obstacles before prisoner swap deal with Hamas: Israeli source

By Abdelraouf Arnaout

JERUSALEM (AA) – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is responsible for hindering the negotiations over a cease-fire and prisoner swap deal, said an Israeli source familiar with the talks, Israeli media reported on Wednesday.

Israeli public broadcaster KAN quoted the anonymous source as saying Netanyahu "doesn't stop putting forth new demands with the aim of hindering the negotiations."

KAN added that the source was referring to Netanyahu's insistence not to withdraw from the Philadelphi Corridor on the Gazan-Egyptian border and the Netzarim Axis, which divides the Gaza Strip in two.

With Netanyahu's insistence on these issues, he is responsible for the current stalemate, the source said.

KAN on Tuesday also quoted sources from the Israeli negotiating team accusing Netanyahu of attempting to “blow up” the talks and obstruct reaching a hostage swap deal with Hamas.

"Israel will not, under any circumstances, leave the Philadelphi Corridor and the Netzarim Axis despite the enormous pressure it is under to do so,” Netanyahu said in statements cited by Israeli daily Maariv on Tuesday during a meeting with families of Israelis held captive in Gaza.

"These are strategic principles, both militarily and politically,” he added.

His comments came hours after US President Joe Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that the Israeli premier had agreed to a recent cease-fire and prisoner swap proposal floated by Washington.

- Setting new conditions

Gaza cease-fire talks in Qatar concluded on Friday by presenting "a proposal that narrows the gaps" between Israel and Hamas that is consistent with the principles set out by Biden on May 31.

Biden said in May that Israel presented a three-phase deal that would end hostilities in Gaza and secure the release of hostages held in the coastal enclave.

The plan includes a cease-fire, a hostage-prisoner exchange, and the reconstruction of Gaza.

But Hamas accused Netanyahu on Sunday of setting new conditions in the Gaza cease-fire and hostage swap proposal that was floated during the Doha talks.

“The new proposal meets Netanyahu's conditions and aligns with them, particularly his refusal of a permanent cease-fire, a complete withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, and his insistence on continuing the occupation of the Netzarim Junction, the Rafah crossing, and the Philadelphi Corridor,” Hamas said in a statement.

“He also set new conditions in the hostage swap file and retracted from other terms, which obstructs the completion of the deal,” it added.

For months, the US, Qatar, and Egypt have been trying to reach an agreement between Israel and Hamas to ensure a prisoner exchange and cease-fire and allow humanitarian aid to enter Gaza. But mediation efforts have been stalled due to Netanyahu’s refusal to meet Hamas’s demands to stop the war.

Israel has continued its brutal offensive on the Gaza Strip following a Hamas attack last Oct. 7 despite a UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate cease-fire.

The conflict has resulted in over 40,170 Palestinian deaths, mostly women and children, and more than 92,740 injuries, according to local health authorities.

The ongoing blockade of Gaza has led to severe shortages of food, clean water, and medicine, leaving much of the region in ruins.

Israel faces accusations of genocide at the International Court of Justice, which has ordered a halt to military operations in the southern city of Rafah, where over one million Palestinians had sought refuge before the area was invaded on May 6.