Latest Gaza ceasefire negotiations stalled: WSJ

Citing “Arab mediators”, the WSJ said the two sides were considering a 60-day ceasefire during which up to 30 Israeli captives held in the Gaza Strip would have been released.

In exchange, Israel was to set Palestinian prisoners free and allow greater humanitarian aid to flow into Gaza, the mediators stated.

But the talks have now stalled.

“Mediators said Israel insisted that it receive only living hostages in any exchange and refused to approve the release of some of the Palestinian detainees sought by Hamas,” the WSJ added.

Hamas also demanded the ceasefire be a “path to an end to the war”, it noted.

Meanwhile, US President-elect Donald Trump cautioned that the remaining Israeli captives held in Gaza must be freed soon.

Speaking briefly to reporters as he attended a New Year’s Eve party at his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida, Trump said, “We’re going to see what happens”, when asked about the possibility of a ceasefire in the besieged enclave.

Regarding the Israeli captives, he added: “I’ll put it this way: They better let the hostages come back soon.”

Last month, Trump warned in a post on social media that “there will be hell to pay” if the captives held in Gaza were not released by the time he takes office on January 20.

“Those responsible will be hit harder than anybody has been hit in the long and storied History of the United States of America. RELEASE THE HOSTAGES NOW!” he wrote.

Hamas has repeatedly expressed its readiness to reach an agreement, even agreeing in May to a proposal by US President Joe Biden, which Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu later rejected by introducing new conditions, including the continuation of military operations.

Critics, including Israeli opposition members and captive families, accuse Netanyahu of stalling negotiations to maintain his position, as far-right ministers such as Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich have threatened to withdraw their support for his government if the Gaza war ends.

The situation in Gaza remains dire, with nearly 2 million residents displaced from their homes under conditions of severe food, water, and medicine shortages.

Israel’s blockade of Gaza, now in its 18th year, has turned the territory into what many describe as the world’s largest open-air prison.

Israel also continues to face international scrutiny, with the International Criminal Court issuing arrest warrants last month for Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity related to the ongoing Gaza offensive.

The Israeli army has continued a genocidal war on Gaza that has killed over 45,500 victims, mostly women and children, since a Hamas attack on Oct. 7, 2023, despite a United Nations Security Council resolution calling for an immediate cease-fire.

In November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants 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.