Hamas opts to stay out of Gaza truce talks but may meet mediators afterwards

A smiling Palestinian child amidst ruins in Gaza , Aug 14, 2024

 Hamas said on Wednesday it would not take part in a new round of Gazaceasefire talks slated for Thursday in Qatar, but an official briefed on the talks said mediators expected to consult with the Palestinian group afterwards.

The U.S. has said it expects indirect talks to go ahead as planned in Qatar’s capital Doha on Thursday, and that a ceasefire agreement was still possible, while warning that progress was needed urgently to avert a wider war.

Axios reported that U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has postponed a trip to the Middle East that had been expected to begin on Tuesday. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters that CIA Director Bill Burns and U.S. Middle East envoy Brett McGurk will represent Washington at the talks on Thursday in Qatar.

Three senior Iranian officials have said that only a ceasefire deal in Gaza would hold Iran back from direct retaliation against Israel for the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh on its soil last month.

“Israel will send the negotiations team on the agreed upon date, that’s tomorrow Aug. 15th, in order to finalise the details of the implementation of the framework agreement,” government spokesperson David Mencer said in a briefing.

The delegation includes Israel’s spy chief David Barnea, head of the domestic security service Ronen Bar and the military’s hostages chief Nitzan Alon, a defense official said.

Hamas has voiced scepticism about the talks, accusing Israel of stalling. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says that Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar has been the main obstacle to a deal.

“Going to new negotiations allows the occupation to impose new conditions and employ the maze of negotiation to conduct more massacres,” Senior Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri told Reuters.

Hamas’ absence from the talks does not eliminate chances of progress since its chief negotiator Khalil al-Hayya is based in Doha and the group has open channels with Egypt and Qatar.

Reuters