As Hostage Agreement and Ceasefire Negotiations Near ‘Finish Line’, Hamas Leader Says Khalil al-Hayya has taken over the helm of the terror group’s military wing, the Izzadin al-Qassam Brigades, a senior Hamas official told the British-based Qatari news organization: Al-Arabia Al Jadeed, on Wednesday.
Al-Hayya is Hamas’s chief negotiator in the talks and serves as the organization’s senior leader in Gaza.
The al-Qassam Brigades leadership on the ground has pledged its full support to al-Hayya, Al Araby Al Jadeed quoted the Hamas official as saying.
In addition, the Hamas official denied reports that the terror group had not provided a list of living hostages held in captivity in Gaza, emphasizing that the group had done so for the hostages it was able to locate through the groups charged with holding them .
The official reportedly said that the leadership of the groups in Gaza holding hostages had written in italics that communication between the different armed factions in Gaza was difficult because of the ongoing war.
Hamas officials, Khalil Al-Hayya and Osama Hamdan, attend a press conference in Beirut, Lebanon, November 21, 2023. (credit: REUTERS/ESA ALEXANDER)
The Hamas official added that the terror group would be willing to provide a full list of living hostages after a ceasefire and “stabilization of the security situation,” Al Araby Al Jadeed reported.
‘A stone’s throw from the finish’
Meanwhile, ceasefire negotiations are “a few steps away from the finish line,” Egyptian sources told the Qatari newspaper.
Furthermore, in recent days we have seen the completion of compromise formulas on issues that marked points of disagreement during the previous round of negotiations. Al Araby Al Jadeed added.
According to the newspaper, this latest breakthrough would result in Israel delaying the release of ten high-profile Palestinian prisoners until the final phase of the deal.
These ten reportedly include Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti, the Secretary General of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, Ahmad Sa’adat, Abbas al-Sayed, Abdullah Barghouti, Ibrahim Hamed and Hassan Salameh, as well as two senior leaders of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad.
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Al Araby Al Jadeed noted that the compromise came after Hamas agreed to Israeli demands that soldiers be released from captivity.
The soldiers include five women, two men with American citizenship and two more with Russian citizenship, the Qatari newspaper said.