Palestinian media reports pinned hopes on Qatari al-Imadi's envoy to the Gaza Strip • Shark al-West report: Israeli security delegation lands in Doha to discuss calm in Gaza • Molotov cocktail landed at air force base in southern Israel
The Qatari envoy in the Gaza Strip // Photo: Reuters
Informed sources estimate that if the Qatari envoy, who is expected to visit the Gaza Strip tomorrow, succeeds in bringing about a serious breakthrough in the mediation talks between Israel and Hamas, the tensions in the south over the past two weeks will come to an end, the Palestinian newspaper Al-Ayyam reported.
A source close to Hamas told the newspaper that although the parties have raised the bar of their demands in recent days, there are positive signs that are starting to emerge among the mediators who have intensified during the last hours at all levels. A bundle of incendiary balloons from Gaza landed this morning (Monday) at one of the air force bases in the south. The incident was handled by a sapper.
The source told the Palestinian newspaper that "al-Amadi's visit is critical and important, and both sides rely on him to get off the tree that has climbed him since the beginning of the crisis, which began with the deteriorating economic and material conditions of Gaza residents." Probably against the background of the corona crisis.
The insider explained that it is estimated that Hamas and the Palestinian factions in the Gaza Strip think that al-Amadi's visit will succeed in reaching a solution that will satisfy the parties, especially in light of the green light given by the United States and Israel for the arrival of the envoy.
An Israeli military delegation led by Southern Command General Herzli Halevi arrived in Doha as part of attempts to calm the Gaza Strip. This was reported by the Arab newspaper published in London, "a-Sharq al-Awsat". According to the report, the delegation also included senior officials from the Mossad, the Shin Bet and the National Security Council. The reason for the departure of the delegation, it was claimed, is Israel's desire to give Qatar a more significant place in the mediation attempts, after Egypt's questions apparently came to naught. No verification was received for the report from other sources.
"Not interested in another round"
Meanwhile, a senior official in one of the terrorist organizations explained that the gradual decrease in tension during the morning hours is related to the parties' desire to provide an opportunity for mediators and provide an atmosphere that will lead to the wording of the understandings. The same senior official added that the mediation talks are much more significant than what was reported in the media. According to him, Israel and Hamas are not interested in deteriorating to another military round in the Gaza Strip, which allows for some optimism despite the fortification of each side in its positions.
The source estimated that Hamas had accepted the Qatari proposal, which would probably include extending the transfer of financial grants, in addition to verifying other UN-sponsored projects. Israel has difficulty accepting all the demands of Hamas that have reached the mediators, but the terrorist organization is aware of this and will eventually accept the mediators' solution.
If indeed the compromise ends with the extension of the Qatari grant and the removal of the restrictions in exchange for a return to peace, then both sides will in effect relinquish their two main demands. As Yoav Limor reported in "Israel Today" on Friday, Hamas demanded an increase in the monthly grant from $ 30 million to $ 40 million. On the other hand, as Lilach Shoval published this week in "Israel Today", Israel demanded the binding of international ventures in the Gaza Strip, in exchange for the return of the martyrs Hadar Goldin and Oron Shaul in their memory, and the captured civilians Avra Mengistu and Hisham a-Sayed.
Meanwhile, this morning, Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoum said following the IDF attack on the Gaza Strip that "the continued Israeli escalation in the Gaza Strip, the control of the siege and the prevention of the entry of fuel, goods and medical equipment to its residents, is a crime against humanity and ongoing aggression against our people. The Israeli occupation will bear all the consequences. If the occupation thinks that the siege will affect our people's determination and resistance, and that he will be assured of security, then he is delusional. He must turn to history and understand its equations. "
