Israeli sources report ‘breakthrough’ in swap negotiations with Hamas
JERUSALEM — Israel denied media reports on Monday about receiving a “final draft” of a Gaza cease-fire and prisoner exchange agreement with Hamas.
Media reports said early Monday that Qatar had delivered the final draft of the agreement to both Israel and Hamas.
The Israeli daily Haaretz, citing an Israeli source, denied that a final draft had been sent.
There was no immediate comment from Qatar on the report.
Haaretz, citing unnamed Israeli sources, reported “a breakthrough in hostage release negotiations at around midnight overnight into Monday.”
A source familiar with the negotiations told the newspaper that both Israel and Hamas are ” very, very close to a deal,” without further elaborating.
On Friday, Israeli media reported that Qatar has sent a “positive message” to Israel regarding Hamas’ willingness to move forward with negotiations on a hostage deal.
The Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth, citing unnamed sources, said on Saturday that “90% of the details of the potential prisoner exchange deal have been agreed upon.”
The prisoner swap and cease-fire talks, mediated by Qatar, Egypt and the US, have been interrupted several times due to new conditions imposed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The Israeli opposition and families of captives accuse Netanyahu of obstructing efforts to reach a Gaza cease-fire and prisoner exchange deal with Hamas.
The Israeli army has continued a genocidal war on Gaza that has killed nearly 46,600 victims, most of them women and children, since Oct. 7, 2023, despite a UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate cease-fire.
The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants in November for Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave. — AA
