Palestinians inspect their damaged tents after an airdropped aid parcel fell on them in the Hamad City area in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip yesterday.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told US President Joe Biden yesterday he has decided to send a delegation to resume stalled negotiations on a hostage release deal with Palestinian resistance movement Hamas, their administrations said.
Israel’s Channel 12 said the head of Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency would lead the Israeli delegation for the talks, though this was not immediately confirmed.
The White House said the two leaders discussed the recent response received from Hamas.
“The president welcomed the prime minister’s decision to authorise his negotiators to engage with US, Qatari, and Egyptian mediators in an effort to close out the deal,” it said in a statement.
Israel received Hamas’ response on Wednesday to a proposal made public at the end of May by Biden that would include the release of about 120 hostages held in Gaza and a ceasefire in the Palestinian enclave.
A Palestinian official close to the mediation effort said that Hamas has shown flexibility over some clauses that would allow a framework agreement to be reached should Israel approve.
Hamas has said any deal must end the war and bring a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza. Israel maintains it will accept only temporary pauses in the fighting.
The plan entails the gradual release of Israeli hostages still being held in Gaza and the pullback of Israeli forces over the first two phases, and the freeing of Palestinian prisoners. The third phase involves the reconstruction of the war-shattered territory and return of the remains of deceased hostages.
In Gaza, Palestinians reacted cautiously ahead of Israel’s response.
“We hope that this is the end of the war, we are exhausted and we can’t stand more setbacks and disappointments,” said Youssef, a father-of-two, now displaced in Khan Younis, in the south of the enclave.
