Biden administration officials reported as saying terms emerging for prospective deal involving release of hostages
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US negotiators are making progress on a potential agreement under which Israel would pause military operations against Hamas in Gaza for two months in exchange for the release of more than 100 hostages who were captured in the 7 October attack on Israeli, according to two senior administration officials, Associated Press reports.
The officials, who requested anonymity to discuss the sensitive discussions, said on Saturday that emerging terms of the yet-to-be sealed deal would play out over two phases.
Both leaders affirmed that a hostage deal is central to establishing a prolonged humanitarian pause in the fighting and ensure additional life-saving humanitarian assistance reaches civilians in need throughout Gaza. They underscored the urgency of the situation, and welcomed the close cooperation among their teams to advance recent discussions.
The decision by the US, UK and other western nations to freeze funding for the UN’s agency for Palestinian refugees will significantly worsen the humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip, Palestinians have warned. Britain, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Switzerland and Finland joined the US, Australia and Canada in pausing funding after UNRWA, the UN’s Relief and Works Agency for Palestine, revealed that an investigation had been launched into 12 members of staff who allegedly took part in the 7 October attack led by Hamas that killed 1,140 people.
Israel’s foreign minister said his country would seek to stop the UNRWA from operating in Gaza after the war. Israel was aiming to ensure “UNRWA will not be a part of the day after”, Israel Katz said on Saturday.
Hamas said Israel was on a “campaign of incitement” against UN agencies delivering aid to Palestinians in Gaza. A statement by the militant group highlighted an Israeli accusation of “collusion” between the World Health Organisation and Hamas, which the UN agency rejected on Friday.
The Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has increased public pressure on Qatar to help secure the release of the remaining hostages in Gaza. Asked about his closed-door remarks, an audio recording of which was leaked to Israeli TV this week, that he was refraining from thanking Qatar for its mediation and deemed it “problematic”, Netanyahu told reporters: “I take back nothing.”
Palestine’s foreign ministry has reiterated its condemnation of “the ongoing genocide against our people for the 113th consecutive day”. It also condemned the “clear Israeli determination to continue destroying the Gaza Strip and turning it into an inhabitable place”.
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