Hamas is under pressure to accept the United States “bridging proposal” for a Gaza hostage deal as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is set to arrive in Israel on Sunday in advance of what Washington hopes will be a final round of negotiations set for Cairo on Wednesday.
“There is no answer from Hamas,” a source told The Jerusalem Post on Saturday, explaining that “there is heavy pressure on Hamas” from the United States, Egypt, and Qatar to “give a positive response.”
Those two Arab countries have been the main mediators for the deal, with the support of the US.
The US and Israel expressed cautious optimism after CIA Director William Burns held two days of talks in Doha that ended Friday.
US special envoy Brett McGurk, Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed Al Thani, and Egyptian Intelligence Chief Abbas Kamel participated in the negotiations. The high-level Israel delegation that returned Friday was headed by Mossad Chief David Barnea.
Hamas was not directly involved in the talks but was kept briefed on progress
At the end of those Doha talks, the United States put a “final bridging proposal” on the table, which it holds addressed the taps that exist between Israel and Hamas with regard to the three-phase hostage proposal US President Joe Biden unveiled on May 31, based on an Israeli proposal of May 27.
A senior US administration official told reporters on Friday that “What is on the table now basically bridges every gap, and we do believe it's time to conclude it. And when we get together next weekend, the aim will very much be to do so.”
Barnea’s team updated Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the talks in Doha, his office said on Saturday night.
“The team expressed to the Prime Minister cautious optimism regarding the possibility of progress on the deal, in accordance with the updated American proposal (based on the May 27th framework), including components acceptable to Israel,” the Prime Minister’s Office explained.
“It is hoped that the heavy pressure on Hamas by the United States and the mediators will remove its opposition to the American proposal and will lead to a breakthrough in the talks,” the Prime Minister’s Office stated.
A source confirmed to The Jerusalem Post that there was: “significant progress" and that the US had laid down a “creative” proposal that allowed for “flexibility.”
Lower-level Israeli teams are expected to be in Qatar and Cairo on Sunday to continue talks.
Senior US administration official: “This is the final stage, the end game of the process.”
Channel 12 reported that under the terms of the bridging proposal, female hostages, including female soldiers, would be freed first.
It has long been understood that some 18-33 hostages of the remaining 115 captives, known as humanitarian cases, would be freed during the first six weeks of the proposal in exchange for a lull in the war.
Two hostages held by Hamas since 2014 and 2015, Avera Mengistu and Hisham al-Sayed would also be released in that first phase.
In addition, Israel has been given the list of Palestinian security prisons and terrorists that Hamas wants to see freed in exchange for the hostages.
US President Joe Biden on Friday said that parties negotiating a ceasefire in Gaza were closer to reaching a deal but were not there yet.
"We're much, much closer than we were three days ago," Biden told reporters at the White House. "I don't want to jinx anything," he said, explaining that "we're not there yet," but "we're close."
The stakes have been high to conclude a deal that would see the return of the remaining 115 hostages in Gaza and a ceasefire deal that would end the war that began on October 7.
The US also hopes that a deal would avert reprisal strikes against Israel by Iran and its proxy Hezbollah in Lebanon, which it fears would spark a regional war.
Qatar keeping the dogs at bay
The Washington Post reported that Thani had spoken with Iranian leaders and asked that Tehran not attack Israel while intense diplomatic efforts were underway to finalize a deal.
An unnamed source tied to Hezbollah also told The Washington Post it would restrain itself from launching a major attack, which could possibly impair ceasefire efforts. The Iranian Foreign Ministry confirmed on X that a conversation had taken place with Qatar.
Hamas senior official Sami Abu Zuhri told Reuters on Friday that the US administration is trying to create a "false positive atmosphere" and has no real intention of stopping the war in Gaza and is only trying to buy time.
Multiple Hamas officials on Saturday denied US and Israeli claims that a ceasefire-hostage deal was progressing - insisting that it was an "illusion" and that parties abide by the July 2 agreement presented by US President Joe Biden.
Senior Hamas official Ghazi Hamad lashed out at Netanyahu for "undermining" the current hostage and ceasefire negotiations in a Friday interview with the Hezbollah-affiliated Al-Mayadeen.
Hamad told Al-Mayadeen that Netanyahu was "practicing deception" and claimed that he was "setting new conditions and undermining what was previously agreed upon."
Hamad pushed the idea that Netanyahu was not interested in a deal and was actively preventing the conclusion of negotiations.
Hamad: 'Netanyahu undermined the agreement from the ground up.'
Hamas Political Bureau member Hossam Badran insisted that the terror group would adhere only to the terms discussed in the July 2 mediation attempts, it was announced on Hamas's Telegram channel.
Badran noted that the July 2 discussions centered on a proposal made by United States President Joe Biden, which he credited to Israel. Citing Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, Badran claimed that Netanyahu was obstructing parties from reaching an agreement.
In a joint statement Qatar, Egypt and the US said on Friday, that “Senior officials from our governments will reconvene in Cairo before the end of next week with the aim to conclude the deal under the terms put forward" in Doha on Friday.
“The path is now set for that outcome, saving lives, bringing relief to the people of Gaza, and de-escalating regional tensions,” the three countries stated.
“As the leaders of the three countries stated last week, ‘There is no further time to waste nor excuses from any party for further delay. It is time to release the hostages and detainees, begin the ceasefire, and implement this agreement,’” the three countries stressed in their statement.