An Israeli government spokesman said on Monday that any decision regarding the besieged Hamas fighters would be made in cooperation with the Trump administration. This statement came after Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law, met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem.
Hamas fighters are trapped in Gaza
There are about 200 fighters in the tunnels under Rafah in the Gaza area that is still under the control of the Israeli army, and Hamas is demanding that they be allowed to leave – something that Israel has so far resisted.
US envoy Steve Witkoff last week described efforts to resolve the standoff by giving fighters safe passage to return to Hamas-controlled areas of Gaza in exchange for disarming them as a test case for future steps in the broader ceasefire plan.
Two Western diplomats told… news agency And that Israel was reluctant to allow any safe passage, whether to anywhere else in Gaza or to Egypt.
Will not surrender: Hamas
A Hamas official told the Associated Press that talks on the issue are continuing. He added that Hamas is keen to resolve the conflict and “remove any pretext that Israel could use to undermine the ceasefire agreement,” but added that Hamas rejects the surrender of the fighters.
Another Palestinian source told the Associated Press that the mediators have intensified their efforts to resolve the conflict, believing that any armed attempt to force them to surrender could threaten the entire ceasefire.
One month of ceasefire in Gaza
According to the spokesman, the two sides discussed disarming Hamas, demilitarizing Gaza, and ensuring that Hamas will not have any role in Gaza again.
Kushner arrived in Israel on Sunday to hold talks with Netanyahu about implementing the American plan to end the war in Gaza. Monday’s meeting comes a month after the US-brokered peace agreement entered into force after two years of devastating war between Hamas and Israel in Gaza.
(tags for translation)Gaza ceasefire
