Israeli representatives informed Qatari and Egyptian mediators that they are not ready to continue negotiations on the ceasefire deal until Hamas provides the list of the hostages who are still alive and gives a concrete response on the number of Palestinian prisoners that the mediators suggested to be released, Axios reported on Friday citing two Israeli officials with knowledge of the matter. Egypt and Qatar previously promised they would put more pressure on Hamas if Israel accepted sending its delegation to Doha for talks. “The mediators promised that Hamas would give numbers and that didn’t happen,” an Israeli official told the media outlet, adding that the country’s delegation returned from Qatar on Thursday without answers. Israel is currently waiting to hear whether United States President Joe Biden’s talks with representatives of Qatar and Egypt, held on Thursday, will have any effect and push Hamas to provide answers.
Egypt expects ceasefire deal to be agreed by Ramadan
Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said on Friday that his country expects the agreement on a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip to be reached by Ramadan, which should begin on March 10 or 11. “We are hopeful that we can reach a cessation of hostilities and exchange of hostages. Everyone recognizes that we have a time limit to be successful before the start of Ramadan,” the minister stated at the Antalya Diplomacy Forum in Turkey. Previously, United States President Joe Biden said that he hoped a ceasefire deal to be reached by Monday, March 4, but retracted it on Thursday after the Israeli military opened fire on Palestinians waiting for humanitarian aid in Gaza City, leaving over a hundred dead.