Cairo, Jan 11 (EFE).- The talks mediated by Qatar, Egypt, and the United States to reach a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip are in their “final phase,” pending the arrival of an Israeli delegation in Doha to approve the text of the agreement, a source from the Palestinian group Hamas told EFE.<\/p>
The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the mediators were awaiting the arrival in Doha of an Israeli delegation (presumably led by Mossad director David Barnea) to present “their approval of the final changes” to the text.<\/p>
The latest draft stipulates in the first phase the complete withdrawal of Israeli troops from the Philadelphi corridor (the border between Gaza and the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt) as well as the “partial” withdrawal from various points in the Palestinian enclave.<\/p>
During this period, the Israel Defense Forces will be allowed to maintain “guard posts” in Gaza, while on the last day of the third phase, the occupying soldiers will carry out a “complete withdrawal” from the enclave.<\/p>
The source did not give further details of the agreement yet claimed that most of the differences regarding the exchange of hostages in Gaza for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails had been resolved.<\/p>
However, he warned that there were still “discrepancies” in some points and the wording of the text.<\/p>
The developments come after weeks of stalemate in the negotiations and a visit to Doha by Steve Witkoff, President-elect Donald Trump’s special envoy to the Middle East, who discussed progress in the ceasefire talks with Qatari authorities on Friday.<\/p>
According to a statement from the Qatari Foreign Affairs Ministry, Witkoff met with the Arab country’s head of diplomacy, Mohamed bin Abderrahman.<\/p>
US President elected Donald Trump, who will take office in the White House on Jan. 20, insisted that he wanted to end wars in which the US is involved, such as the one in Gaza, and threatened Hamas with “hell on earth” if it did not release the hostages by then. EFE<\/p>
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