Ibrahim Khazen
13 January 2025•Update: 13 January 2025
DOHA, Qatar
Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani held separate meetings Monday evening with a delegation from Hamas and US envoy Steve Witkoff to address the latest developments in Gaza cease-fire negotiations.
The Amiri Diwan said in a statement that Sheikh Tamim welcomed a Hamas delegation led by senior official Khalil Al-Hayya at Lusail Palace in Doha. Discussions focused on “the latest developments in ceasefire talks aimed at achieving a lasting truce in Gaza.”
The emir reiterated Qatar’s unwavering stance on the Palestinian cause, emphasizing “the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people to establish their independent state on the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital.”
In a separate statement, the Amiri Diwan confirmed that Sheikh Tamim also met with Steve Witkoff, the Middle East envoy for US President-elect Donald Trump. The meeting, which included Brett McGurk, US National Security Council coordinator for Middle East and North Africa affairs, focused on progress in the cease-fire talks.
Doha is currently hosting mediation talks between Israel and Hamas, with Qatar, Egypt, and the US working for nearly a year to secure a Gaza truce despite repeated Israeli obstacles.
Earlier Monday, the Israeli news site Walla reported that Israel is nearing a potential prisoner exchange deal with Hamas. Israeli Channel 12 cited unnamed Israeli sources stating that “the details of the deal to release prisoners have been agreed upon, and the final response from Hamas is now awaited.”
Meanwhile, The Jerusalem Post newspaper reported that Tel Aviv and Hamas are close to finalizing a cease-fire agreement, which could include the release of 33 Israeli hostages during an initial phase lasting up to 42 days.
According to the daily, citing unnamed sources, the first stage of the deal would involve the gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, with the exception of an undefined security perimeter.
The report noted that on the 16th day of the cease-fire, negotiations would begin for subsequent phases of the agreement. These talks would aim to secure the release of all hostages held in Gaza and further Israeli military withdrawals.
The newspaper added that while the sources did not provide a definitive timeline, some expect the initial phase to extend over 42 days.
There has been no official confirmation or response from Hamas regarding these claims.
Israel currently holds more than 10,300 Palestinian prisoners, while it is estimated that 99 Israelis are detained in Gaza. Hamas said that many Israeli captives have been killed in indiscriminate Israeli airstrikes.
The prisoner swap and cease-fire talks, mediated by Qatar, Egypt and the US, have been interrupted several times due to new conditions imposed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The Israeli opposition and families of captives accuse Netanyahu of obstructing efforts to reach a Gaza cease-fire and prisoner exchange deal with Hamas.
The Israeli army has continued a genocidal war on Gaza that has killed nearly 46,600 victims, most of them women and children, since Oct. 7, 2023, despite a UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate cease-fire.
The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants in November for Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.
*Writing by Mohammad Sio
