Summer Said
Appearances
WSJ What’s News
Negotiators Race to Extend Israel-Hamas Cease-Fire
So currently the US, the Qataris and the Egyptian negotiators are in talks inside Cairo with the Israeli officials with the indirect participation of Hamas to try to at least extend the current ceasefire to encompass the holy months of Ramadan. The issue is still both sides want two different things. So Hamas is happy to extend the deal, but with different terms.
WSJ What’s News
Negotiators Race to Extend Israel-Hamas Cease-Fire
While Israel is demanding that even if we go for an extension, it would be at the current terms that we've had in Phase 1. They still have not figured out how we move to Phase 2. Hamas still asking to proceed with a comprehensive prisoner exchange. They wanted to encompass a definitive end to the war. They want the full withdrawal of the IDF.
WSJ What’s News
Negotiators Race to Extend Israel-Hamas Cease-Fire
Wenn sie nicht einen Weg finden können, um diese erste Phase des Ausbruchs von einem Monat abzuwenden, was passiert?
WSJ What’s News
Negotiators Race to Extend Israel-Hamas Cease-Fire
So we've been talking to Arab officials or the mediators and they've been saying that the Israelis have been telling them that within a week, if we do not get more hostages released, Israel will definitely resume the war. Now the chances of that remain unclear. You mentioned there Israel willing to resume fighting if something can't be worked out within a week.
WSJ What’s News
Negotiators Race to Extend Israel-Hamas Cease-Fire
So there is definitely a lot of posturing that is happening from both sides. However, for the last three weeks, Hamas has definitely inside Gaza, so the military wing, has been acting as if war is about to restart. So there were orders that were given to all of their militants to abandon cell phones, go back to the basic habits.
WSJ What’s News
Negotiators Race to Extend Israel-Hamas Cease-Fire
Modes of communications, make sure that they do not move wide in the open inside Gaza. They created a whole entire unit to just monitor the borders and watch out for infiltrations. There is also a bunch of Hamas fighters that are going inside Gaza to try to search for spies or devices that were left in buildings or ruins or schools.
WSJ What’s News
Negotiators Race to Extend Israel-Hamas Cease-Fire
So they definitely do think that there is a nice chance that the war will restart again.
WSJ What’s News
Negotiators Race to Extend Israel-Hamas Cease-Fire
Definitely Hamas has taken these threats very seriously, but they also know that the only leverage that they have right now are the hostages. So Arab officials do not believe that Hamas will be easily giving away their lost leverage. They believe that once their hostages are out, that's it for them. that the game is up and they will have to leave.
WSJ What’s News
Negotiators Race to Extend Israel-Hamas Cease-Fire
So this is definitely the most difficult stage of the negotiations. While it may sound a bit ridiculous to say that Phase 1 was easier to reach, considering the fact that we've been negotiating it since November 2023, it was always known that Phase 2 was going to be the most critical and the most difficult phase of the negotiations that we were ever going to encounter.
WSJ What’s News
Negotiators Race to Extend Israel-Hamas Cease-Fire
Orders were given to abandon cell phones. A bunch of Hamas fighters are going inside Gaza to try to search for spies. So they definitely do think that there is a nice chance that the war will restart again.