United StatesEgypt and Qatar call on Israel and Hamas to sit at the ceasefire negotiating table Gaza. “The time has come to conclude the ceasefire agreement and release of hostages and detainees,” reads a joint statement from the leaders of the three countries released by the White House. “We have worked tirelessly for many months to forge a framework agreement which is now on the table, with only the implementation details remaining to be concluded” and “called on both sides to urgently resume the discussion on Thursday August 15th in Doha or Cairo to fill all remaining gaps and start implementing the agreement without further delay.”
The Israeli Prime Minister’s Office Benjamin Netanyahu announced that Israel will send a delegation to Doha or Cairo on Thursday. It is “important… to quickly reach” an agreement, the Israeli defense minister said, Yoav Gallantduring a telephone conversation with his American counterpart, Lloyd Austin. We are now waiting for a response from Hamas, which however has made a request. According to Sky News In Arabic, the organization in power in the Gaza Strip has once again called for the release of Marwan Barghouti and leaders of Palestinian factions. “The request was accepted and supported by the US and the mediators of Egypt and Qatar,” the broadcaster reported. Barghouti, a very popular Palestinian leader and a prominent figure in Fatahis serving five life sentences in an Israeli prison for taking part in planning three terrorist attacks that killed five Israelis during the Second Intifada. Hamas had demanded his release during negotiations in March, which later fell through.
Meanwhile, fighting continues in the Strip. The Israeli army has confirmed the start of a new ground operation in Khan Younisin the southern area of the enclave, following intelligence information indicating “the presence of terrorists and terrorist infrastructure in the area”. Israel Defense Forces They continue to fight Hamas further south, in Raphaas well as in the area of Netzarim Corridorin the central area of the Strip.
