Qatar鈥檚 foreign ministry spokesman said on Tuesday that Israel should have ceased operations in Gaza already in line with US president Donald Trump鈥檚 peace plan.
鈥楻egarding the ceasefire, this question should be directed first to the Israeli occupation government. It was supposed to actually cease fire if the statements made by the prime minister there regarding adherence to the Trump plan were true,鈥� Majed al-Ansari told reporters in Doha.
Hamas and Israel are holding indirect talks聽in Egypt this week about Trump鈥檚 20-point proposal to end the conflict in Gaza and build a roadmap for its post-war governance.
After Hamas agreed on Friday to discuss freeing hostages under Trump鈥檚 plan, the US president had called on Israel to cease fire in Gaza, posting on his Truth Social platform: 鈥業srael must immediately stop the bombing of Gaza, so that we can get the Hostages out safely and quickly!鈥�
Ansari was cautious on the Egypt peace talks.
鈥業 have no doubt that this round of negotiations is a process in which all parties are strongly committed to reaching a consensus, but聽 there are many details to consider,鈥� he said.
He said the plan鈥檚 clauses 鈥榬equire practical interpretation on the ground, which of course requires communication with all parties鈥�.
He said it was still 鈥榚arly鈥� to discuss the future of Hamas鈥檚 political bureau in Doha, after Israel hit the group鈥檚 leadership in the Qatari capital last month.
The Hamas bureau, which Qatar hosts with US blessing, has helped Doha mediate in the conflict, he said, adding: 鈥楢s long as there is a need for a channel of communication with Hamas, there is a need for this鈥�.
Meanwhile, Israel marks the second anniversary of the October 7, 2023 attack on Tuesday.
The attack resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures.
Hamas also took 251 people hostage into Gaza, of whom 47 remain captive, including 25 the Israeli military says are dead.
Two years on, with much of Gaza flattened, tens of thousands of Palestinians killed, a UN-declared famine unfolding and Israeli hostage families still longing for their loved ones鈥� return, global pressure to end the war has escalated massively.
In Israel, dozens of relatives and friends of those killed at the Nova music festival lit candles and held a minute鈥檚 silence at the site of the attack, where militants killed more than 370 people and seized dozens of hostages.
Another ceremony was due in Tel Aviv鈥檚 Hostages Square, where weekly rallies have kept up calls for the captives鈥� release.
Israel鈥檚 retaliatory military campaign in Gaza has killed at least 67,160 people, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory, figures the United Nations considers credible.
Their data does not distinguish between civilians and combatants but indicates that over half of the dead are women and children.
The air, land and sea bombardment has flattened entire neighbourhoods, with homes, hospitals, schools and water networks in ruins.
Hundreds of thousands of homeless Gazans now shelter in overcrowded camps and open areas with little access to food, water or sanitation.
鈥榃e have lost everything in this war, our homes, family members, friends, neighbours,鈥� said Hanan Mohammed, 36, who is displaced from her home in Jabalia.
鈥業 can鈥檛 wait for a ceasefire to be announced and for this endless bloodshed and death to stop... there is nothing left but destruction.鈥�
After two years of war, 72 per cent of the Israeli public said they were dissatisfied with the government鈥檚 handling of the war, according to a recent survey by the Institute for National Security Studies.
A UN probe last month accused Israel of genocide in Gaza while rights groups have accused Hamas of committing war crimes and crimes against humanity during the October 7 attack. Both sides reject the allegations.
Trump told Newsmax TV that 鈥業 think we鈥檙e very, very close to having a deal. I think there鈥檚 a lot of goodwill being shown now. It鈥檚 pretty amazing actually鈥�.
Two truces earlier in the war enabled the release of dozens of hostages in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, though they did not envisage a more permanent ceasefire or the disarmament of Hamas.
Israeli military chief Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir has warned that if these negotiations fail, the military will 鈥榬eturn to fighting鈥� in Gaza.
