A new initiative is beginning to take shape to reach a ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip, high-ranking Hamas sources have said.
The sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that “several Arab countries are involved in the negotiations aimed at ending the war and ensuring the withdrawal of Israeli forces from residential areas as an essential and initial step, with full maps to be laid out regarding withdrawal from various regions.”
According to Fox News, Hamas has drafted a letter to US President Donald Trump, asking the American commander in chief to guarantee a 60-day ceasefire in exchange for the immediate release of half of the Israeli hostages being detained within Gaza.
The letter is expected to be delivered to Trump this week, Fox News has learned from a senior Trump administration official and a second source directly involved in negotiations.
When asked by Asharq Al-Awsat, a Hamas source said he was not aware of the letter sent to Trump, adding that the movement’s leadership has lost all faith in the US administration.
But another source confirmed that Hamas has sent a letter to Trump “through some mediators and parties that are trying to resolve the crisis of negotiations that stopped after the (Israeli) airstrike on the movement’s leadership in Doha.”
Earlier this month, Israel launched an airstrike against Hamas leaders in the Qatari capital.
Qatar, which has acted as a mediator alongside Egypt in talks on the ceasefire in the almost two-year-old war in Gaza, condemned the attack as "cowardly" and called it a flagrant violation of international law.
The attack, which failed to kill the targeted leaders, left five Hamas members dead.
