DOHA: Mediator Qatar said Tuesday it was waiting for a “clear position” from Israel on a proposed Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal outlined by US President Joe Biden.
“We have yet to see a very clear position from the Israeli government towards the principles laid out by President Biden,” foreign ministry spokesman Majed al-Ansari said, adding there was no “concrete approval” from either side.
“We have read and seen the contradictory statements coming in from Israeli ministers, which doesn’t give us much confidence of there being a unified position in Israel over this current proposal on the table,” he said. The Palestinian movement Hamas had also yet to give a firm response, the official added.
“We haven’t seen any statements on both sides that give us a lot of confidence,” he added, noting however that the process was ongoing and that “we have been working with both sides on proposals on the table”.
The official later said Doha had received an “Israeli proposal which reflects the positions stated by President Biden” and is “much closer” to meeting conditions of both Israel and Hamas.
“We have delivered the proposal to the Hamas side,” Ansari said, adding that Qatar is making its “best efforts to finalise an agreement”.
Qatar, with the United States and Egypt, has been engaged in months of back-and-forth negotiations over details for a ceasefire and exchange of hostages and prisoners.
But with the exception of a seven-day break in fighting from November that led to the release of more than 100 hostages, the mediation efforts have not stopped the fighting.
In an effort to reinvigorate talks, Biden said on Friday that Israel was offering a new three-stage roadmap.
According to the US president, Israel’s offer would begin with a six-week phase that would see its forces withdraw from populated areas of Gaza and an initial hostage-prisoner exchange.
The parties would then negotiate for a lasting ceasefire, with the truce to continue as long as talks are ongoing. In its final phase, the plan would lead to the reconstruction of the devastated Palestinian territory without Hamas in power, Biden said.
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