Qatar says committed to bridging Hamas-Israel gap to reach Gaza cease-fire deal

By Ibrahim Al-Khazen

DOHA, Qatar (AA) – Qatar said Wednesday it is committed to bridging the gap between Hamas and Israel to end the conflict in the Gaza Strip.

Qatari Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani held talks in Doha with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who is on his eighth regional tour since last Oct. 7 to advance efforts to reach a cease-fire deal in Gaza. Qatar was the tour’s last leg that also included Egypt, Israel and Jordan.

Doha "is counting on the US role and all partners to put pressure on the parties to stop the war in Gaza,” bin Abdulrahman said at a joint press conference with Blinken.

He said his talks with the top US diplomat took up Hamas’ response to a cease-fire proposal outlined by US President Joe Biden last month.

The Qatari minister said all countries in the region are “open to a peace plan based on the Arab Peace Initiative leading to a two-state solution.”

The Saudi-proposed initiative offers Israel full diplomatic recognition from the Arab states in return for an Israeli withdrawal from Arab land occupied in 1967 and the establishment of a Palestinian state.

“What we are trying to achieve is a cease-fire,” bin Abdulrahman said.

He stressed the importance of having three guarantor countries to ensure the continuation of negotiations until a permanent cease-fire is reached.

On Monday, the UN Security Council adopted a resolution calling on Israel and Hamas to fully implement the Biden-backed cease-fire and prisoner exchange proposal.

The proposal includes three phases, ultimately leading to a permanent cessation of hostilities and the release of Israeli hostages in Gaza in exchange for Palestinian prisoners.

Blinken said on Tuesday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had “reaffirmed his commitment” to a Gaza cease-fire proposal during their meeting in Tel Aviv on Monday evening.

Meanwhile, a joint statement from Hamas and Islamic Jihad indicated their “readiness to engage positively to reach an agreement that ends this war against our people, based on a sense of national responsibility.”

While Israel insists on a temporary cessation of hostilities, the Palestinian factions demand an end to the war, the withdrawal of Israeli forces, the return of displaced people, sufficient humanitarian aid, and the reconstruction of Gaza as part of any prisoner exchange agreement.

The Palestinian factions accuse Israel and its ally, the US, of lacking the desire to end the war, suggesting that the negotiations are a way to buy time for Tel Aviv to achieve strategic gains.

Israel has faced international condemnation amid its continued brutal offensive on Gaza since Oct. 7, 2023 attack by Hamas despite a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire.

More than 37,200 Palestinians have since been killed in Gaza, most of them women and children, and more than 84,900 others injured, according to local health authorities.

Eight months into the Israeli war, vast tracts of Gaza lay in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, whose latest ruling ordered Tel Aviv to immediately halt its operation in the southern city of Rafah, where over a million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.

*Writing by Mohammad Sio