Stopping the war on Gaza.. What are the features of the possible final deal between Hamas and Israel?

Identical sources revealed the features of the deal between Hamas and Israel that are likely to be reached, aiming to reach an agreement to stop the Israeli war on Gaza and release prisoners and detainees. Hamas sources reported that the final vision has been completed.

The Israeli Broadcasting Corporation quoted American sources as saying that the talks are about a multi-stage deal that includes the return of all Israeli detainees. The sources pointed out that the pledges between each stage of the deal are the key to reaching an agreement.

She explained that Israel would have to pledge not to return to fighting. Hamas would also have to pledge to return all remaining Israeli detainees in the second phase. The sources saw the current deal as "the best Hamas could see and it is reasonable for all parties."

Final vision of the agreement

For his part, a leading source in the Hamas movement confirmed, "It can be said at the present moment that the final vision regarding the ceasefire in Gaza has been completed," according to a statement reported by the newspaper "Al-Araby Al-Jadeed."

The movement's leader added, "There are arrangements among the mediators to announce the agreement, explaining that everyone is now waiting for the envoy of the occupation government's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Doha, to deliver his approval of the latest amendments, and then hold a press conference for the three mediators, Qatar, Egypt, and the United States of America, to announce the details of the agreement, its timeline, and the date of its entry into force."

According to Al-Araby Al-Jadeed newspaper, the proposed ceasefire agreement in Gaza includes a complete withdrawal from the Salah al-Din (Philadelphi) axis on the last day of the agreement’s stages.

Informed sources said that there is a disagreement regarding moving from the first phase of the deal to the second phase, and indicated that there is a debate between the parties regarding the legal wording of the deal, and each party insists on its own freedom of action.

Mediators are making new efforts to reach a ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip, and to find a deal to exchange prisoners and detainees between Hamas and Israel, before US President-elect Donald Trump takes office on January 20.

On Friday, the Israeli Channel Kan quoted unnamed informed foreign sources as saying that “Tel Aviv agreed to advance negotiations on the second phase of the prisoner swap deal in parallel with the implementation of the first phase, with the aim of ensuring the continuity of the process until all detainees are released.”

Although the details of the first and second phases of the potential deal are still unannounced, Israeli media, including the official broadcasting authority, say that the first phase includes the release of the elderly and the sick, while the second phase includes the release of soldiers.

Points of contention

More than once, the prisoner exchange negotiations, which are being mediated by Qatar, Egypt and the United States, have faltered due to Netanyahu’s insistence on maintaining control over the Philadelphi Corridor on the border between Gaza and Egypt, and the Rafah crossing in Gaza, and preventing the return of Palestinian faction fighters to the northern Gaza Strip by inspecting returnees through the Netzarim corridor in the middle of the Strip.

For its part, Hamas insists on its principles, which it announced since the beginning of the negotiations, which require a complete Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip and a complete cessation of war, in order to accept any agreement.

Tel Aviv holds more than 10,300 Palestinians in its prisons, and while it estimates that there are 99 Israeli prisoners in the Gaza Strip, Hamas announced the killing of dozens of its prisoners in random Israeli raids.

Since October 7, 2023, Israel, with American support, has been committing genocide in the Gaza Strip, leaving more than 155,000 Palestinian martyrs and wounded, most of them children and women, and more than 11,000 missing, amid massive destruction and deadly famine.

Source: Al-Araby Al-Jadeed + Al Jazeera + Agencies