Egypt Proposes 2-Day Ceasefire in Gaza and Calls for Release of 4 Hostages
-
Raven Ruma
- . October 28, 2024
- . Update: October 28, 2024 11:11 pm
On Sunday, October 28, 2024, the president of Egypt announced that his country had proposed a two-day ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, which would lead to the release of four hostages who are being held in Gaza. Israel and Hamas didn’t respond immediately since the most recent negotiations were expected in Qatar, another significant mediator.
The head of Israel’s Mossad was to travel to Doha on Sunday to meet with the prime minister of Qatar and the head of the CIA in an effort to put a stop to the war and reduce tensions in the region that have risen since Hamas attacked southern Israel on October 7, 2023.
All three of the United States, Qatar, and Egypt have been important mediators.
According to Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi, the proposal includes the delivery of humanitarian supplies into Gaza under siege and a certain number of Palestinian political detainees. “The halt will be enshrined through further negotiation, but this is how one moves the situation forward,” he added. The Egyptian president has ever unveiled such a strategy in public before.
There have been several stalemates in negotiations for a lengthier, phased cease-fire. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has stated that Israeli forces will stay in Gaza until Hamas is destroyed, despite Hamas’ demand that they leave the territory as a precondition. Since the week-long break in conflict in November during the early weeks of the conflict, there hasn’t been a ceasefire.
Israeli has bombed several schools which have been converted into shelters, which they claim are targeting specific militants who take shelter among civilians. Women and children are mostly killed during these attacks.
Israel has drastically reduced the flow of basic humanitarian goods in recent weeks, forcing aid organizations to sound the alarm about a disastrous situation in the region. Waves of wounded have overtaken the three hospitals in the north that remain, one of which was raided over the weekend.
