By EDUARDO PAZ-MARTINEZ
McALLEN, Texas | Okay, but when did tiny Qatar become a major player in geo-politics. It is now the main broker in that ceasefire being considered for war-torn Palestine. Really? Who knew? Qatar, yes. With the added backing of the real force behind the halt-the-killing push, the U.S.
Israel, attacked by Hamas terrorists based in the Gaza Strip, isn't all that into it, but it does answer to the whims of the Americans.
This from axios.com: [ A deal between Israel and Hamas to free dozens of hostages and declare a multi-day ceasefire is imminent and could be announced by the Qatari mediators as soon as today. If the deal materializes it will be the biggest diplomatic breakthrough since the Oct. 7 Hamas attack.
Two sources with direct knowledge of the talks tell Axios that as part of the hostage deal Israel would release three Palestinian prisoners held in Israel for each Israeli hostage released by Hamas.
In the first phase of the two-phase deal, Hamas is expected to release 50 Israeli women and children held in Gaza, while Israel is expected to release around 150 Palestinian prisoners, mostly women and minors. Some of the Israeli hostages are dual citizens.
The release of hostages and prisoners in the first phase of the deal would take place over four days of ceasefire in Gaza.
As part of the deal, Israel would allow around 300 aid trucks per day to enter Gaza from Egypt.
In a second phase, Hamas could release up to another 50 Israeli hostages - women, children and elderly people - in return for extending the ceasefire by several more days. Israel would also release Palestinian prisoners at the same 3:1 ratio to the number of hostages freed.
More than 240 people, including several Americans, were abducted during the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attack. ]
News reporting has the Palestinian death count at some 13,000.
Revenge-bent Israel continues its invasion...
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Exchanging hostages for prisoners is a mistake that Israel has made before. It rewards Hamas for taking hostages and motivates them to keep doing it.
ReplyDeleteHostages need to be freed. That's the starting point...
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