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(DOHA, QATAR) — The recent Gaza ceasefire talks in Qatar have not led anywhere yet, the Qatari prime minister said Tuesday, citing a “fundamental gap” between the two parties, Israel and Hamas.
“One party is looking for a partial deal that might or have the possibility to lead to a comprehensive deal and the other party is looking just for a one-off deal and to end the war and to get all the hostages out,” Qatari Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said during a press briefing Tuesday. “And we couldn’t bridge this fundamental gap with whatever proposals we have provided.”
Rounds of negotiations have been ongoing in Doha over the past couple of weeks, he said.
Hamas claimed Tuesday that Israel has not been serious about the negotiations, saying in a statement that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “is extending his delegation’s stay in Doha on a day-to-day basis without engaging in any serious negotiations, and no real talks have taken place since last Saturday.”
The Israeli Prime Minister’s Office claimed Tuesday that Hamas is refusing the American proposal for the return of the hostages.
“After approximately one week of intensive contacts in Doha, the senior members of the negotiating team will return to Israel for consultations; the working echelon will — at present — remain in Doha,” the office said.
The Israeli Prime Minister’s Office said in a statement on Sunday that the Israeli negotiation team is working to “exhaust every chance of a deal,” including one that would include “the release of all hostages, the expulsion of Hamas terrorists [from Gaza], and the disarmament of the Strip.”
Amid the ceasefire talks, the Israel Defense Forces announced on Sunday the start of a new “extensive ground operation” throughout northern and southern Gaza.
The escalation has been met with condemnation from the leaders of the United Kingdom, France and Canada, who called on Israel in a joint statement on Monday to stop its military operations and immediately allow humanitarian aid to enter Gaza, otherwise they “will take further concrete actions in response.”
U.K. Foreign Secretary David Lammy subsequently announced Tuesday that the U.K. has suspended negotiations with Israel on a new free trade agreement and will impose sanctions on West Bank settlers, saying, “Despite our efforts, this Israeli government’s egregious actions and rhetoric have continued.”
Netanyahu had pushed back against the joint statement in a statement on X on Monday, saying that by “asking Israel to end a defensive war for our survival before Hamas terrorists on our border are destroyed,” the leaders in London, Ottawa and Paris are “offering a huge prize for the genocidal attack on Israel on October 7 while inviting more such atrocities.”
“The war can end tomorrow if the remaining hostages are released, Hamas lays down its arms, its murderous leaders are exiled and Gaza is demilitarized. No nation can be expected to accept anything less and Israel certainly won’t,” Netanyahu said.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry also brushed off the U.K.’s announcements on the free trade talks and sanctions on Tuesday, saying, “External pressure will not divert Israel from its path in defending its existence and security against enemies who seek its destruction.”
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