Hamas to stay out of Gaza ceasefire talks

Hamas said on Wednesday (14) it would not take part in a new round of Gaza ceasefire talks scheduled for Thursday (15) in Qatar. An official briefed on the negotiations said mediators expected to consult the armed group afterwards.

The United States said it expected indirect talks to proceed as planned in the Qatari capital Doha on Thursday (15) and that a ceasefire agreement was still possible. It warned that progress was urgently needed to avoid a wider war.

Axios reported that US Secretary of State Antony Blinken postponed a trip to the Middle East that was due to begin on Tuesday (13).

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said CIA Director Bill Burns and US Middle East envoy Brett McGurk will represent Washington at Thursday’s talks in Qatar.

Three senior Iranian officials said only a ceasefire deal in Gaza would prevent Iran from directly retaliating against Israel for the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh on its territory last month.

“Israel will send the negotiating team on the agreed date, which is tomorrow, August 15, to finalize the details of the implementation of the framework agreement,” government spokesman David Mencer said.

The delegation includes Israel’s spy chief David Barnea, the head of the domestic security service, Ronen Bar, and the army’s hostage chief, Nitzan Alon, a defense official said.

Hamas has expressed skepticism about the talks, accusing Israel of stalling. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar has been the main obstacle to a deal.

“Going to new negotiations allows the occupation to impose new conditions and employ the negotiation labyrinth to carry out more massacres,” senior Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri told Reuters.

Hamas’ absence from the talks does not eliminate the chances of progress, as its chief negotiator, Khalil al-Hayya, is based in Doha and the group has open channels with Egypt and Qatar.

“Hamas is committed to the proposal presented to it on July 2, which is based on the UN Security Council resolution and Biden’s speech, and the movement is prepared to immediately begin discussion on a mechanism to implement it,” Abu Zuhri said.

A source familiar with the matter said Hamas wants the mediators to return with a “serious response” from Israel. If that happens, the group says it will meet with the mediators after Thursday’s session.

An official briefed on the negotiations process said the mediators hoped to consult with Hamas.

In a statement that Hamas issued jointly with some smaller factions, it reaffirmed the outstanding demands that the factions had for a ceasefire agreement to be reached.

The group said the negotiations “should examine mechanisms to implement what was agreed in the document submitted by the mediators which would achieve a comprehensive ceasefire, a complete withdrawal of Israeli forces, breaking the siege, opening crossings and reconstruction of Gaza, as well as reaching a serious agreement on hostages/prisoners.”

The statement rejected any US or Israeli intervention in shaping the day after the Gaza war.

Climbing in Lebanon

Amos Hochstein, a senior adviser to US President Joe Biden, was in Lebanon to prevent a separate escalation between Iran-backed Hezbollah and Israel after a senior Hezbollah commander was killed in Beirut’s southern suburbs last month.

Hochstein met with parliament speaker Nabih Berri, who leads the armed Amal movement allied with Hezbollah, and will meet with Lebanese interim Prime Minister Najib Mikati.

“There are no longer any valid excuses from any side for further delays,” the US envoy said at a news conference.

In Gaza, residents of the southern town of Khan Younis said Israeli forces blew up houses in the east and stepped up tank shelling in eastern areas of the city center.

Israel said it was responding to Hamas rocket fire and had struck launch pads and militants. Armed wings of Hamas and Islamic Jihad said they attacked Israeli forces.

Hamas also said its fighters were involved in fierce clashes with Israeli forces in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, where Israel said it killed several militants.

A ceasefire deal would aim to secure the release of Israeli hostages held in Gaza in exchange for Palestinians held in Israel, but the two sides remain divided over sequencing and other issues.

Netanyahu has insisted that Israel maintain control of a border strip between Gaza and Egypt to prevent arms smuggling, although Israel’s military chief of staff, Herzi Halevi, has said he could monitor the area remotely if necessary.

Divisions also remain over allowing people inside Gaza to travel freely between parts of the territory following a ceasefire agreement.

A Hamas-led attack on Israeli communities around the Gaza Strip on October 7 killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, with more than 250 hostages taken to Gaza, according to Israeli tallies.

In response, Israeli forces destroyed much of Gaza and displaced most of the population.