Qatar Says Current Gaza Ceasefire Proposal Is Closer in Positions of Both Sides

Hana Abdelrahaman al-Rai, a four-year-old child suffering from malnutrition and displaced from Gaza City's eastern suburb of Shujaiya, reacts as she is carried inside a tent in Zawayda in the central Gaza Strip on June 4, 2024. (AFP)
Hana Abdelrahaman al-Rai, a four-year-old child suffering from malnutrition and displaced from Gaza City's eastern suburb of Shujaiya, reacts as she is carried inside a tent in Zawayda in the central Gaza Strip on June 4, 2024. (AFP)
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Qatar Says Current Gaza Ceasefire Proposal Is Closer in Positions of Both Sides

Hana Abdelrahaman al-Rai, a four-year-old child suffering from malnutrition and displaced from Gaza City's eastern suburb of Shujaiya, reacts as she is carried inside a tent in Zawayda in the central Gaza Strip on June 4, 2024. (AFP)
Hana Abdelrahaman al-Rai, a four-year-old child suffering from malnutrition and displaced from Gaza City's eastern suburb of Shujaiya, reacts as she is carried inside a tent in Zawayda in the central Gaza Strip on June 4, 2024. (AFP)

Qatar said on Tuesday it delivered an Israeli proposal to Hamas that reflected the positions stated by US President Joe Biden, adding that the paper was now much closer to the positions of both sides.

Qatar, which has been mediating on Gaza between Israel and Hamas, also stressed that there should be a clear position from both parties to reach a ceasefire deal, its foreign ministry spokesperson said in a press briefing.

"We are waiting for a clear Israeli position that represents the entire government in response to the US's Gaza proposal," Majed Al-Ansari added.

Biden on Friday laid out a three-phase ceasefire proposal from Israel to Palestinian group Hamas to end the war in Gaza that has killed tens of thousands and caused a humanitarian crisis.

The offer calls for a ceasefire, the release of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners, and the reconstruction of Gaza.

"The ceasefire deal should immediately end the long suffering of all people in Gaza and the hostages and their families and provide a roadmap for a permanent ceasefire and an end to the crisis", al-Ansari said.

Qatar said that it was still waiting to reach language that was agreed by both parties.

"We are now using our best efforts to finalize an agreement," al-Ansari added.



Palestinian UN Ambassador Says Security Council Must Demand Ceasefire in Gaza

Permanent Observer for the State of Palestine to the United Nations, Riyad Mansour speaks during a United Nations Security Council meeting on the situation in Gaza, at UN headquarters in New York City, US, October 16, 2024. (Reuters)
Permanent Observer for the State of Palestine to the United Nations, Riyad Mansour speaks during a United Nations Security Council meeting on the situation in Gaza, at UN headquarters in New York City, US, October 16, 2024. (Reuters)
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Palestinian UN Ambassador Says Security Council Must Demand Ceasefire in Gaza

Permanent Observer for the State of Palestine to the United Nations, Riyad Mansour speaks during a United Nations Security Council meeting on the situation in Gaza, at UN headquarters in New York City, US, October 16, 2024. (Reuters)
Permanent Observer for the State of Palestine to the United Nations, Riyad Mansour speaks during a United Nations Security Council meeting on the situation in Gaza, at UN headquarters in New York City, US, October 16, 2024. (Reuters)

Arab nations and the Palestinians are pushing for a UN Security Council resolution that demands an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.

Asked to respond to Israel and Hamas saying they don’t want a ceasefire following the Israeli killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, Riyad Mansour, the Palestinian UN ambassador, told reporters Friday that the decision isn’t up to them.

“It is not up to the fighting parties to dictate upon all of us their wishes and their activities, ... especially Israel,” he said. “It is the duty of the Security Council to say, `We demand an immediate ceasefire and compliance by all parties, and we demand that to take place, for example, within 24 hours or within 48 hours.”

Mansour said it should not be “taboo” for the Security Council to draft a resolution under Chapter 7 of the UN Charter, which would make it militarily enforceable.

Mansour was speaking after he and 10 Arab ambassadors met with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

The Palestinian ambassador said they discussed a leaked proposal from Israeli generals to declare northern Gaza a military zone and seal it off, which he said would threaten 400,000 Palestinians there with death or starvation.

Mansour expressed hope that the often divided Security Council has “the spine and the strength and the determination” to stop that from happening and demand an immediate cease-fire and the delivery of humanitarian assistance throughout Gaza, “and to allow for opening a door to a political horizon.”