Qatar informs Israel of Hamas’ decision to suspend negotiations on a prisoner exchange deal
Official Israeli media said, on Thursday, that Qatar informed the Israeli government that Hamas had decided to suspend negotiations on a prisoner exchange deal.
The official Israeli Broadcasting Corporation stated that this came according to a source familiar with the details of the negotiations, without naming him.
The Israeli Broadcasting Corporation said, quoting the source, “Hamas conveyed to the Qatari mediators that it demands that Israel withdraw all its forces from the Gaza Strip from the first phase of the exchange deal and stop the war”.
On Wednesday evening, Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesman Majid al Ansari said in a statement on X that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is obstructing Qatar’s mediation efforts between Israel and Hamas, if his statements regarding the efforts made by Doha are correct.
Ansari’s statement came after a recording of Netanyahu, transmitted by the Israeli media, blaming Doha for conducting the mediation with the aim of reaching an agreement between Hamas and Israel.
In the recording broadcast by Channel 12 on Tuesday, Netanyahu said that he didn’t thank Qatar publicly because it didn’t exert more pressure on Hamas, and he criticized Qatari-US relations, calling for pressure on Doha.
On Tuesday, Ansari confirmed that mediation efforts between the Palestinians and Israel are still ongoing for a ceasefire and prisoner exchange, while mediation and Qatari efforts continue to ensure the entry of aid and medicine into the Gaza Strip.
On December 1, a temporary truce between Hamas and Israel ended, concluded with Qatari-Egyptian-US mediation, and lasted 7 days, during which prisoners were exchanged and limited humanitarian aid was brought into the Strip, which is inhabited by about 2.3 million Palestinians.
Israel estimates that there are about 136 hostages still being held in the Gaza Strip, according to identical media reports and statements by Israeli officials.
