The deal between the Israeli government and Hamas for a ceasefire in Gaza is expected to commence as planned on Sunday, despite a last-minute “loose end” in negotiations, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken stated on Thursday.
Israel had planned to hold a security cabinet meeting on Thursday to vote on the acceptance and approval of the deal but Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delayed the meeting, accusing Hamas of making last-minute demands.
“The Israeli cabinet will not convene until the mediators notify Israel that Hamas has accepted all elements of the agreement,” Netanyahu’s office said in a statement on Thursday.
Despite the reported setback, Hamas official Izzat el-Reshiq reaffirmed the group’s commitment to the deal, aimed at bringing to an end the 15-month conflict.
Speaking at a news conference on Thursday in Washington, Blinken said he was not surprised the deal has some challenges left but expressed optimism that it will be sorted out.
“It’s not exactly surprising that in a process and negotiation that has been this challenging and this fraught, you may get a loose end,” Blinken said
“We’re tying up that loose end as we speak,” he added.
A U.S. official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to Reuters, said the last remaining dispute was over the identities of some prisoners Hamas wanted to be released.
U.S. President Joe Biden’s envoy, Brett McGurk, and US President-elect Donald Trump’s envoy, Steve Witkoff, were both in Doha with Egyptian and Qatari mediators working to resolve the issue, which should be cleared up soon, the official said.
The Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal were reached on Wednesday, following the Qatari PM’s meeting with Hamas negotiators and separately Israeli negotiators in his office, CNN reported, citing a source.
The deal would see Hamas release 33 hostages during the first phase, while Israel would release hundreds of Palestinians in its prisons.
The release of the hostages would be the first phase of the deal being finalized, CNN reported, adding that negotiations to reach the second phase, which is intended to end the war, would begin on the 16th day of the implementation of the deal.
The war in Gaza escalated after Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, killing 1208 and kidnapping 251 persons.
Since then, Israel’s campaign in Gaza has left over 46,000 casualties, the Palestinian health ministry said—a report considered reliable by the United Nations.