Gaza Truce: Does An ‘All for All’ Swap Deal Resolve the Current Impasse?

 Two Palestinian girls on their way to fill water in Gaza City. (Reuters)
Two Palestinian girls on their way to fill water in Gaza City. (Reuters)
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Gaza Truce: Does An ‘All for All’ Swap Deal Resolve the Current Impasse?

 Two Palestinian girls on their way to fill water in Gaza City. (Reuters)
Two Palestinian girls on their way to fill water in Gaza City. (Reuters)

Negotiations between Hamas and Israel about further steps in the Gaza ceasefire deal stand at crossroads, as Israel continues to “stall” the implementation of the second phase of its truce agreement with the Palestinian movement, refusing to hand over Palestinian prisoners, several observers said on Tuesday.

Hamas had submitted a proposal to Israel, through mediators, for a comprehensive prisoner-for-hostage swap based on the principle of “all for all” as part of ongoing negotiations.

Meanwhile, reports said the US and Israel are considering an extension of the first phase of the Gaza truce, which expires in a few days.

Several experts told Asharq Al-Awsat on Tuesday that the Hamas “all for all” proposal could be a solution only if Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was serious about ending the war.

The experts said Israel would likely delay the first phase of the truce agreement, and that an “all for all” swap deal would be considered at later stages.

A ceasefire and hostage deal led by Cairo, Doha and Washington, came into effect on January 19 and included three phases, each of which will last 42 days.

Negotiations over the second phase, intended to secure the release of the remaining hostages and the full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, had been meant to start this month, 16 days after the start of the truce.

Mousa Abu Marzouk, the Qatar-based head of Hamas’s foreign relations office, said in an interview with The New York Times that releasing some more hostages and prisoners during an extension of the first phase could be discussed.

But he clarified that, under any circumstances, Hamas would demand far more prisoners in exchange for each hostage because the group considers the remaining Israeli hostages to be soldiers.

Abu Marzouk said Hamas was also open to releasing all hostages at the same time, if Israel was willing to free the thousands of Palestinians in its prisons, end the war and withdraw from Gaza.

“We’re ready to have a comprehensive deal,” he said.

Meanwhile, Steve Witkoff, US President Donald Trump’s point person on the Middle East, is expected to head back to the region to boost diplomacy.

Al Hurra TV channel said Witkoff will exert efforts to get an extension of phase one of the truce while the Israeli Haaretz newspaper said that Israel will presumably try to extend the deal's first stage by adding additional phases, in which a few more hostages would be freed.

Dr. Ahmed Fouad Anwar, Professor of Hebrew Language at Alexandria University and expert on Israeli affairs considered the Hamas “all for all” proposal as a “psychological war” aimed to exert further public Israeli pressure on Netanyahu.

He said that currently, Israel and Hamas are closer to extend the first phase of the ceasefire agreement rather than to reach an “all for all” deal.

This, he said, is due to Netanyahu’s opponents, who already threatened the Israeli government not to kick off the second phase of the deal or to withdraw from the Strip.

Commenting on the latest developments in Gaza, former Palestinian Ambassador to Egypt, Barakat Al-Fara said an “all for all” swap deal could solve the recurring and stumbling crisis between Israel and Hamas.

However, Al-Fara doubted Israel would stick to the deal.

He assumed that Netanyahu could accept Hamas’ proposal only to secure the release of his hostages.

In return, Al-Fara said, Israel will refuse to release the Palestinian prisoners, and instead returns to war, particularly since Hamas is in a difficult and weak position.

Dr. Ayman Al-Raqab, a professor of political science at Al-Quds University, said Netanyahu is not serious about completing the truce agreement.

“Netanyahu wants to secure the release of all his hostages while continuing the war,” he said, adding that the Israeli PM may arrest the released Palestinians prisoners again at any time.

“Neither an all for all deal nor the extension of the first phase would guarantee the implementation of the truce agreement in the absence of serious US pressures on the Israeli prime minister to abide by any agreement with Hamas,” Al-Raqab said.



Egypt Strengthens Cooperation with Africa to Tackle Water Challenges

Egypt affirms that water issues are a shared challenge growing more severe due to climate change (Photo by Abdel Fattah Farag)
Egypt affirms that water issues are a shared challenge growing more severe due to climate change (Photo by Abdel Fattah Farag)
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Egypt Strengthens Cooperation with Africa to Tackle Water Challenges

Egypt affirms that water issues are a shared challenge growing more severe due to climate change (Photo by Abdel Fattah Farag)
Egypt affirms that water issues are a shared challenge growing more severe due to climate change (Photo by Abdel Fattah Farag)

Egypt is continuing to strengthen its cooperation with African nations to confront the pressing challenges of water and food security.

“Water issues are a shared challenge that grows more severe due to climate change and resource scarcity, especially given Egypt’s near-total dependence on Nile water,” Egyptian Minister of Irrigation Hani Sewilam said, according to an official statement by the Egyptian Cabinet on Friday.

Speaking on behalf of the Prime Minister during a celebration at the Djibouti Embassy in Cairo marking Djibouti’s 48th independence anniversary, Sewilam emphasized that cross-border cooperation, rooted in principles of international law, is the optimal path to ensure sustainable water resources.

Egypt frequently raises the issue of water security, particularly amid the ongoing crisis over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, which Ethiopia has built on the main tributary of the Nile since 2011 to generate electricity. Egypt and Sudan fear it will impact their water shares.

Ambassador Salah Halima, former Assistant Foreign Minister and Deputy Chairman of the Egyptian Council for African Affairs, stressed that water security is closely linked to river management and dam operations. He told Asharq Al-Awsat that Egypt consistently underscores the importance of respecting international laws and agreements on managing water resources and criticized Ethiopia’s unilateral actions to impose a de facto situation regarding the dam.

Halima added that achieving water security requires cooperation among states in managing water resources and constructing dams, noting that Egypt has valuable experience African nations can benefit from.

Egypt faces a water deficit estimated at 30 billion cubic meters annually. Its share of Nile water amounts to 55.5 billion cubic meters per year, while consumption exceeds 85 billion cubic meters. The shortfall is covered by groundwater extraction, seawater desalination projects, and recycling agricultural drainage water, according to the Ministry of Irrigation.

On Friday, Sewilam highlighted the longstanding ties between Egypt and Djibouti as an example of cooperation amid complex regional and global challenges requiring greater unity and shared vision. He noted that the regional and international context demands an understanding of the magnitude of challenges, ranging from security and peace to sustainable development and socio-economic stability, especially in the Arab and African regions.

Egypt is finalizing a memorandum of understanding with Djibouti’s Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources to cooperate in fields such as integrated water resources management, desalination technologies, groundwater recharge, capacity building, knowledge exchange, and joint research.

In parallel, Egyptian Minister of Agriculture Alaa Farouk reaffirmed Egypt’s commitment to working with African countries to develop more efficient, inclusive, and sustainable agricultural value chains. Speaking during FAO meetings in Rome, he said that strengthening these chains is central to food security, economic growth, and job creation, particularly in rural areas. Farouk also discussed promoting Egyptian investment in Africa to boost agricultural development and food security across the continent.