Israeli Officials Say Hostage-Ceasefire Deal Is Close
Stand for Israel | January 13, 2025
Israeli officials say a hostage-ceasefire deal is really close as they wait for approval from Hamas, reports The Times of Israel:
Multiple reports Monday indicated that talks in Qatar for a ceasefire-hostage deal in Gaza had achieved a significant breakthrough overnight, with Israeli officials speaking to several Hebrew media outlets saying an agreement could be close.
Speaking to Reuters on Monday morning, an unnamed official briefed on the negotiations said Doha had handed both parties a “final” draft of the agreement, following a breakthrough in the early hours of the morning in talks between Israel’s negotiating team, Qatar’s prime minister, and US President-elect Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy, who recently joined the negotiations.
In a follow-up report later in the day, an Israeli official told Reuters that Jerusalem had yet to receive a draft proposal from Qatar. But Israel’s Channel 12 reported that the draft was received by Israel overnight and that it was broadly acceptable to Israel. It said the draft had been approved by Hamas leaders abroad, and “everything” now depended on the agreement of Muhammad Sinwar, Hamas’s de facto leader in Gaza.