Egypt outlines its actions towards Hamas, detailing their respective strategies.
The Egyptian mediators are finding the proposed ceasefire agreement for the Gaza Strip hard to swallow. Two Egyptian officials privy to the negotiations claim that Hamas is unlikely to go along with the plan as it stands. One of the key reasons is Hamas's expected release of hostages in the initial phase without any guarantees from Israel or the mediators, with negotiations for the subsequent phases still ongoing.
As one of the officials put it, "The Americans are offering promises, not guarantees." Hamas sees this as releasing civilians as human shields for a six-week truce without any guarantees of a permanent ceasefire.
Philadelphia Corridor Causing Trouble
The proposal is also criticized for its lack of clarity on Israel's commitment to withdraw its forces from two strategic areas in Gaza - the Philadelphia Corridor along the Egyptian border and the Netzarim Corridor running east-west through the Gaza Strip. Israel has only agreed to scale back its presence in the Philadelphia Corridor and vaguely promised to vacate the area eventually, but without any assurances.
"That's not acceptable to us, and it's not acceptable to Hamas either," said the first official.
The Philadelphia Corridor is a narrow passage, about 100 meters wide and 14 kilometers long, and is home to the Rafah border crossing to Egypt. The corridor is part of a larger demilitarized zone on both sides of the Israeli-Egyptian border. According to the peace agreement, only a limited number of soldiers or border guards are allowed in the zone.
Israel has claimed control of the corridor since May, which has strained its relationship with Egypt, which has protested against Israel's encroachment towards its border. From Israel's perspective, the Philadelphia Corridor serves as a conduit for smuggling, including weapons. The army reports the existence of several tunnels beneath the corridor, some large enough for vehicles to pass through, which Hamas is suspected of using to smuggle weapons into Gaza.
Blinken Departs
Another Egyptian official familiar with the latest developments in the negotiations concurred that a breakthrough looks unlikely. Israel is unwilling to withdraw its forces fully from the Gaza Strip during the second phase of the agreement, and it demands to keep its forces in the Philadelphia Corridor and maintain full control over the Netzarim Corridor.
Egypt has informed both the U.S. and Israel that it will not reopen the Rafah border crossing until Israeli forces fully withdraw from the Palestinian side and vacate the Philadelphia Corridor.
Meanwhile, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has departed the region after talks in Egypt with President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and later in Doha, Qatar. He urged Israel and Hamas to reach an agreement and warned that they must do so within the coming days. Mediators will convene in Cairo on Thursday and Friday to further discuss the proposal before presenting it to Hamas.
The Egyptian official mentioned, "That's not acceptable to us, and it's not acceptable to Hamas either," referring to Israel's vague promise to vacate the Philadelphia Corridor without any assurances.
The proposal's lack of clarity on the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Philadelphia Corridor and Netzarim Corridor is causing significant concerns amongst both Egyptian mediators and Hamas.
