Aid Enters Gaza Through Israel Amid Reports That a New Hostage Deal Possible
As humanitarian aid flowed directly into Gaza from Israel for the first time since the war began in October, reports emerged on Sunday that both the Israeli government and Hamas leadership were open to reopening negotiations on a temporary ceasefire and hostage exchange deal.
Citing Egyptian security sources, Reuters reported on Sunday that both sides were willing to consider the prospect of renewed talks but major disagreements on the details surrounding a new deal remain unresolved.
The sources indicate that Egypt and Qatar demanded that aid be allowed to enter Gaza from Israel’s Kerem Shalom crossing as a prerequisite to new negotiations, and on Sunday, Israeli authorities announced that an aid convoy of 79 trucks had passed into Gaza from the crossing.
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Other points of contention detailed by Reuters’ sources relate to which hostages are to be released and where a potential Israeli withdrawal line would be located. Allegedly, Hamas wants to independently dictate which hostages are to be released and for Israeli forces to retreat behind pre-set lines. Israel is supposedly unwilling to permit Hamas to choose the withdrawal lines and refuses to consider a length of time for the truce without seeing Hamas’ list of hostages.
While rumors of a potential hostage deal swirl, Hebrew media reported over the weekend that David Barnea, head of Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency, would be traveling to Oslo, Norway to meet with Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani about a potential agreement.
Within Israel, protestors have continued to urge their government to refocus on freeing the remaining hostages from Hamas after the Israel Defense Forces announced that three hostages had been mistakenly killed by Israeli soldiers in the Shejaiya neighborhood of Gaza City on Friday.
During a meeting held with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and war cabinet minister Benny Gantz on Saturday, a small group of released hostages and relatives of hostages still trapped in Gaza urged the two men to try and negotiate a new hostage deal. According to a transcript of the meeting released by Channel 12, Gantz, who joined Netanyahu’s wartime cabinet and leads the centrist National Unity Alliance in Israel’s Knesset, reportedly told one participant that “the issue of the hostages has priority.”
“I won’t stay in a place [the current governing coalition] where there is a possibility to get something done [in terms of releasing hostages] and it’s not done. First, the hostages have to be returned. We’ll have a lifetime to battle Hamas,” Gantz added.
Since the temporary truce agreement between the two parties collapsed on November 1, neither side has publicly expressed a willingness to restart talks despite continued efforts by mediators from Egypt, Qatar, and the United States to bring both sides back to the negotiating table. What was originally a four-day ceasefire was extended to seven days total and saw the release of over 100 hostages held in Gaza by Hamas and its affiliated groups in exchange for nearly 250 Palestinians held in Israeli jails.
