1 More photos
Ihya Sinwar
(Photo: AP, IDF press service)
Israel issued an ultimatum to Hamas: if it does not agree to a hostage exchange deal within a week, the IDF will launch an operation in Rafah. The Wall Street Journal reported this on May 3. The message is based on information from Egyptian sources.
It is noted that Hamas is delaying its response to the previous deal proposal in order to achieve more favorable conditions for itself that guarantee its survival. This proposal, developed jointly by Israel and Egypt, was presented to Hamas at the end of the past week, and the political leadership should have familiarized Ihya Sinwar with it, but he is delaying his response.
The Israeli source claims that, despite the optimism of the mediators, so far Israel has not received any hints about Hamas’s readiness to soften its position.
However, in an attempt to achieve success in the negotiations, the head of the CIA, William Burns, arrived in Cairo.
At the same time, there are many rumors surrounding what is happening in the negotiations. According to some of them, Hamas gave a negative response to Israeli proposals for an exchange deal, but mediators in Egypt and Qatar asked representatives of the terrorist organization not to rush and think again. This was reported on May 3 by the Hezbollah-affiliated newspaper Al-Akhbar, whose information generally coincides with the rhetoric of Hamas leaders in recent days.
According to the publication, Hamas’ response was expected to arrive on Thursday, May 2. But in Egypt and Qatar they received a clear indication that this answer would be negative. And then a message was sent to Gaza asking not to rush into refusal. Probably, it was precisely this circumstance that became the reason for the intensified contacts in Cairo in the last 24 hours, the existence of which, however, was denied by all parties.
The newspaper also claimed that the Israeli side was given a document containing “Hamas’ comments and demands on the exchange deal proposal.”
At the same time, Al-Jazeera spread information that a Hamas delegation was again heading to Cairo with “the necessary amendments to the deal.”
According to the Al-Mayadeen publication, the Hamas delegation heading to Cairo was headed by Khalil al-Hiya, one of Ihya Sinwar’s confidants. Hamas, as stated in the publication, “wants approval for a complete withdrawal of troops from all areas of the Gaza Strip, “guarantees of the absence of any non-Palestinian entity in the enclave” and the involvement of Turkey in the negotiation process.
The publication’s sources expressed the opinion that “the next few hours will be decisive” as the Americans will try to prevent a resumption of the war in Gaza, even if Hamas refuses the deal.” In this regard, it is assumed that Egypt and Qatar (and after them Hamas) received certain guarantees that Israel would not enter Rafah.
Sinvar – because he is already confident of victory over Israel. Netanyahu – because he is not confident of victory over Hamas and is fighting only for his own political survival.
Netanyahu, who has faced criticism within Israel over the failures of October 7, has seen his ratings stabilize as the conflict drags on, despite international pressure on him. The deal means a cessation of hostilities, which brings a political reckoning and, as a result, loss authorities,” the article states.
As for Sinwar, according to Arab mediators, he believes that he has already won the war – regardless of whether he survives it or not. “He believes he has opened the world’s eyes to the suffering of the Palestinians and brought the conflict to the forefront of global politics. Isn’t that a victory?” – said one of the sources.
