Gaza ceasefire soon? What Israel, Hamas and the US have said
Following Trump's announcement and Hamas' ‘positive response’ to the agreement, Israel has sent a delegation to Doha for the latest round of talks.
A fresh round of ceasefire talks are set to take place in Qatar between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas. This round comes after US president Donald Trump announced a 60-day truce for the Gaza war had been decided upon.
Following Trump's announcement and Hamas' ‘positive response’ to the agreement, Israel has sent a delegation to Doha for the latest round of talks.
The war in Gaza broke out on October 7, 2023 after Hamas launched a terror attack in southern Israel. In response to this, Israel declared a "complete seize" of the Gaza Strip. Israel's war on Gaza has killed over 57,000 people since 2023, majority of whom have been attributed women and children.
While Hamas announced 'positive response' to the ceasefire proposal shared by the US, Israel, however, is reportedly unhappy with the terms.
What each side said on the Gaza truce
United States
US president Donald Trump, last week, announced that Israel had agreed to a 60-day truce in Gaza. Taking to Truth Social, the US president wrote - “My Representatives had a long and productive meeting with the Israelis today on Gaza. Israel has agreed to the necessary conditions to finalize the 60 Day CEASEFIRE, during which time we will work with all parties to end the War.”
The final decision on the truce between Israel and Hamas will be delivered by Qatar and Egypt, Trump added.
Amid Fourth of July celebrations, the US president told reporters that the truce could come into force as soon as next week.
Hamas
In an official statement issued by the militant group, Hamas delivered a positive response to the ceasefire proposal. “The Hamas movement has completed its internal consultations as well as discussions with Palestinian factions and forces regarding the latest proposal by the mediators to halt the aggression against our people in Gaza,” read the official statement, as per Reuters.
"The movement has delivered its response to the brotherly mediators, which was characterized by a positive spirit. Hamas is fully prepared, with all seriousness, to immediately enter a new round of negotiations on the mechanism for implementing this framework," the statement added further.
Israel
While Israel has not released an official statement regarding truce developments, Trump stated that Tel Aviv had agreed to the proposal.
As per Israeli media, Israel has “received” Hamas' response and that the document was "under review."
However, as per Al Jazeera, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is not happy with the proposal as he dispatched a team of negotiators to Doha.
A statement from his office said that the "changes Hamas is requesting to make to the Qatari proposal were delivered to us last night and are unacceptable to Israel," reported Al Jazeera.
