Hamas ‘ready for peace’ Trump tells Israel
Nidal al-Mughrabi and Gram Slattery |
US President Donald Trump has told Israel to immediately stop bombing Gaza after Hamas agreed to release hostages and accept some other terms in a US plan to end the war, while some issues like disarmament appear unresolved.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said Israel was preparing for an “immediate implementation” of the first stage of Trump’s Gaza plan for the release of Israeli hostages, following Hamas’ response.
Shortly after, Israeli media reported that the country’s political echelon had instructed the military to reduce offensive activity in Gaza.
The Israeli military chief of staff instructed forces in a statement to advance readiness for the implementation of the first phase of Trump’s plan, without mentioning whether there would be reduction of military activity in Gaza.
Hamas, the Palestinian militant group that controls Gaza, responded to Trump’s 20-point plan after the US president gave the group until Sunday to accept or face grave consequences.
Trump has invested significant political capital in efforts to end a two-year-old war that has killed tens of thousands and left US ally Israel increasingly isolated on the world stage.
Trump said he believed Hamas had showed it was “ready for a lasting PEACE” and he put the onus on Netanyahu’s government.
“Israel must immediately stop the bombing of Gaza, so that we can get the Hostages out safely and quickly!” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
Netanyahu’s office said Israel “will continue to work in full cooperation with the President and his team to end the war in accordance with the principles set out by Israel, which align with President Trump’s vision.”
Residents said Israeli tanks bombarded Talateeni Street, a major artery in the heart of Gaza City, after Trump’s message to Israel to stop.
Witnesses said Israeli military planes also intensified bombing in Gaza City in the hour after Hamas issued its statement, hitting several houses in the Remal neighbourhood.
Before Israel’s latest announcements, families of those being held by Hamas in Gaza called on Netanyahu “to immediately order negotiations for the return of all hostages.”
Domestically, the Israeli prime minister is caught between growing pressure to end the war — from hostage families and a war-weary public — and demands from hardline members of his far-right coalition who insist there must be no let-up in the campaign in Gaza.
Israel began its offensive in Gaza after the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack on Israel in which some 1,200 people were killed and 251 taken as hostages back to Gaza, according to Israeli tallies. Israel says 48 hostages remain, 20 of whom are alive.
Israel’s military campaign has killed more than 66,000 people in Gaza, most of them civilians, according to Gaza health authorities. Its assault has destroyed much of the strip while aid restrictions have triggered a famine in parts of Gaza, with conditions dire across the enclave.
A UN Commission of Inquiry and multiple human rights experts have concluded that Israel has committed genocide in Gaza. Netanyahu’s government says it has acted in self-defence.
A senior Hamas official told Al Jazeera that the group would not disarm before Israel’s occupation of the enclave ends, comments that underscored the gap between the parties.
Qatar has begun coordination with mediator Egypt and the United States to continue talks on Trump’s Gaza plan, the Qatari foreign ministry spokesperson said on X.
In its response to Trump’s plan, Hamas said it “appreciates the Arab, Islamic, and international efforts, as well as the efforts of US President Donald Trump, calling for an end to the war on the Gaza Strip, the exchange of prisoners, (and) the immediate entry of aid,” among other terms.
It said it was announcing its “approval of releasing all occupation prisoners — both living and remains — according to the exchange formula contained in President Trump’s proposal, with the necessary field conditions for implementing the exchange.”
But Hamas added: “In this context, the movement affirms its readiness to immediately enter, through the mediators, into negotiations to discuss the details.”
The group said it was ready “to hand over the administration of the Gaza Strip to a Palestinian body of independents (technocrats) based on Palestinian national consensus and supported by Arab and Islamic backing.”
Hamas did not make clear whether it would agree to Trump’s proposal that it be barred from exercising political power in Gaza. But the group said it should be “included and will contribute” to any Palestinian national discussion on Gaza’s future.
with AP
Reuters
