US, Egypt, Qatar Call for Urgent Ceasefire Talks Next Week, Netanyahu Signals Agreement
The US, Egypt, and Qatar have called for a resumption of ceasefire talks between Israel and Hamas next week, with the discussions set to take place either in Doha or Cairo. The three countries, in a joint statement, urged both parties to “resume urgent discussion” on August 15, aiming to “close all remaining gaps and commence implementation of the deal without further delay.”
US President Joe Biden, his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, and Qatar’s Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani signed the statement. Early Friday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu indicated that Israel would participate in the talks.
“It is time to bring immediate relief both to the long-suffering people of Gaza as well as the long-suffering hostages and their families,” the statement read, urging Israel and Hamas to refrain from further delays. “The time has come to conclude the ceasefire and hostages and detainees release deal.”
The US, Egypt and Qatar have been mediating the previous cease-fire discussions. Thursday’s joint statement came hours after the White House said Israel-Hamas cease-fire talks are “close” and amid fears of a widening Middle East war following high-profile assassinations of Hamas and Hezbollah leaders.
The framework agreement on the table is based on the principles outlined by President Biden on May 31 and endorsed by U.N. Security Council Resolution 2735, the statement read.
Israel carried out an airstrike on Beirut, Lebanon, on July 30, killing Hezbollah commander Fuad Shukr, a close advisor to the group’s leader Hassan Nasrallah. The following day, Ismail Haniyeh, the long-time chairman of Hamas’ political bureau, was assassinated at his guesthouse in Tehran. Iran blamed Israel for the attack, which occurred just hours after Haniyeh had attended the inauguration of incoming Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian.
If cease-fire talks go ahead according to the proposed timeline, CIA Director William Burns is expected to travel and take part for the US.
Netanyahu’s office said in a statement early Friday that Israel would send its “negotiations team to a place to be determined in order to finalize the details of the implementation of the framework agreement” on the proposed date.
Haniyeh was Hamas’ lead negotiator in cease-fire negotiations with Israel, the US, Qatar and Egypt. His negotiation role seems to have fallen to Yahya Sinwar, who is now the leader of Hamas’ political wing and allegedly masterminded Hamas’ Oct. 7 attacks on Israel. Sinwar is believed to be in hiding in Gaza’s underground tunnels.
In a call with reporters on Thursday, a National Security Council official noted that if the August 15 talks do happen, an agreement likely wouldn’t be reached immediately.
“It’s not like the agreement is going to be ready to be signed on Thursday, there’s still a significant amount of work to do. But we do believe that what’s left here really can be bridged,” the official said.
The ongoing Israeli military campaign in Gaza has significantly strained US-Israel relations this year. The conflict, which began on October 7, 2023, has resulted in the deaths of nearly 40,000 people in the enclave, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.
