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Hamas not calls for an all-for-all hostage-for-prisoner swap. Its leaders now discuss ending the warfare, getting urgently wanted humanitarian help, enabling folks to return to their houses or the locations the place their houses as soon as had been and getting Israel out of Gaza. Israel, not solely traumatized but in addition humiliated by the Oct. 7 assault, insists it would cease at nothing to take away Hamas, even — and if you happen to ask a number of the extra excessive Israeli leaders, particularly — if it means decreasing all of Gaza to rubble.
Mr. Netanyahu ought to have despatched his high safety and intelligence officers to the negotiations and instructed them that nobody may go away till white smoke rose from the chimney. He ought to belief that they perceive the safety dangers that Israel faces and allow them to act accordingly, in actual time, relatively than flying again to Israel for consultations with each growth, as they’ve thus far apparently been required to do.
I’m a powerful advocate of direct negotiations. As invaluable as third-party mediators — from Qatar or Egypt or anyplace else — are, they essentially convey their very own pursuits and their very own types. I used to be informed by three completely different Hamas leaders, one among them from Gaza and two based mostly in Doha, that Hamas is ready to open a direct again channel, which may allow extra artistic considering and result in extra possible options. I delivered that message to the Israeli staff however didn’t obtain a constructive response. It’s potential, in fact, that such communications are underway in secret, however to the most effective of my data that’s not the case.
Within the second week of the warfare, in a video name with about 50 households of the hostages, I informed them two issues: First, the federal government will inform you to close up, however don’t! Scream as loud as you possibly can. Inform the general public the names of your family members. Present their photos, inform their tales. Second, you’ll go around the globe, you’ll meet with politicians and activists and journalists, however on the finish of the day you’ll have to put stress on the Israeli authorities to return your family members. Per week in the past, a big group of the households acknowledged publicly that Mr. Netanyahu has failed at bringing dwelling the hostages, that he doesn’t need an settlement and that he should step down and permit another person to get the job executed.
Lately, the Egyptians and Qataris reported that new concepts had arisen within the negotiations. There’s a spirit of guarded optimism, however negotiations are as soon as once more deadlocked. In the meantime the leaders of Israel’s negotiating staff are not present, and it isn’t clear if the staff has been given a brand new mandate. And the hostages stay in Gaza.
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