Gaza ceasefire talks fail to make breakthrough with Ramadan approaching

가자 라마단 휴전 불발 위기 美•카타르, 협상안 수용 압박 Three days of negotiations with Hamas over a ceasefire in Gaza have failed to make a breakthrough. This comes less than a week before Ramadan, which had been the informal deadline for a deal. Lee Eun-jin reports. International mediators from the U.S., Egypt and Qatar have been in negotiation with Hamas for a ceasefire in Gaza. The mediators have been trying to come to an agreement where Hamas would release Israeli hostages in return for a six-week ceasefire, the release of some Palestinian prisoners and more aid to Gaza. But the three days of negotiations failed to make a breakthrough on Tuesday. This comes less than a week before the start of Ramadan, the Muslim fasting month, which had been the informal deadline for a deal. Israel has demanded Hamas hand over a list of captives who are alive, as well as the captive-to-prisoner ratio it seeks in any release deal, to which Hamas has said the group did not have information on which captives were alive or dead. They also said that the captives were being held by numerous groups in multiple locations. At a press conference in Beirut on Tuesday, senior Hamas official Osama Hamdan said that his group wants a permanent ceasefire, rather than a pause, and a “complete withdrawal“ of Israeli forces. “We reiterate that what the enemy failed to achieve on the battlefield, he will not achieve at the negotiating table. The security and safety of our people will not be achieved except with a permanent ceasefire, the end of the aggression, and the withdrawal from every inch of the Gaza Strip. Providing urgent and appropriate shelter and bringing aid to our people in Gaza is our top priority, and any exchange of prisoners cannot take place before all this is achieved.“ Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has publicly rejected such demands, pledging that the war would go on until Hamas is dismantled and all the captives are returned. Israel did not send a delegation to the latest round of talks due to Hamas not providing the hostage list. With the fasting month of Ramadan, which starts on March 10th, Hamas negotiators agreed on Tuesday to stay for at least one more day of talks. Palestinian-Israeli violence has spiked during Ramadan in previous years creating a strong incentive for leaders to reach a deal before next week. Lee Eunjin, Arirang News. #Gaza_ceasefire #Israel_Hamas_war #ceasefire_agreement #MiddleEast #가자_휴전협상 #이스라엘_하마스_전쟁 #Arirang_News #아리랑뉴스 📣 Facebook : 📣 Twitter : 📣 Homepage : 2024-03-06, 12:00 (KST)