US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan met with Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani today to discuss ongoing efforts to strike a deal between Israel and Hamas that would see a pause in the fighting in Gaza and an exchange of prisoners.
The two leaders “underscored that the release of sick, wounded, elderly, and women hostages would result in an immediate ceasefire in Gaza over a period of at least six weeks”, a statement released by the White House said.
“This first phase of a ceasefire would also enable a surge of humanitarian assistance to the people of Gaza, and provide time and space to secure more enduring arrangements and sustained calm,” the statement continued.
Earlier today, three days of negotiations over a ceasefire in Gaza held in the Egyptian capital Cairo ended without a breakthrough.
Jihad Taha, a Hamas spokesperson, said that “the ball is in the Israeli court”, and that Israel had refused demands for people who fled northern Gaza to be allowed to return and for guarantees of a ceasefire and full withdrawal.
