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According to the US special envoy to Middle East Steve Witkov, the US has withdrawn its delegation from Doha, where it was participating in ceasefire negotiations this week.
The announcement came on the same day that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office announced that Doha negotiators would also leave in light of the response from Hamas. According to reports, Witkov also met with officials from Israel and Qatari in Rome on Thursday.
“We have decided to take the team home from the team for consultation after our latest response from Hamas, which clearly shows the lack of desire to reach a ceasefire in Gaza,” Witkov said in a statement Thursday.
“Although mediators have put in great effort, Hamas does not seem to be integralized or acted in good faith. Now we are looking at alternative options to bring hostages home and create a more stable environment for the people of Gaza.”
Hamas will strengthen its stance at the ceasefire meeting, as Netanyahu recalls the negotiation team.”
Envoy Steve Witkov met with Israeli and Qatari officials in Rome on Thursday to secure a contract to end the war in Gaza. (Dawoud Abo Alkas/Anadolu/Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
Witkov added that Hamas was a “shame” for acting in such a “selfish way” and that the United States is determined in its efforts to bring permanent peace to the region.
According to Israeli media reports, Hamas is currently demanding life sentences for murdering Israelis and the release of 200 Palestinians serving as 2,000 Palestinians who were detained in Gaza since October 7th.
This demand far exceeds a framework supported by previous mediators, reportedly accepted by Israel, including the release of 125 lifeform prisoners and 1,200 other detainees.
The organizations we support are calling for UN collaboration, sounding alarms and calling for abandoned aid in Gaza.
At a briefing at the State Department on Thursday, Associate Deputy Spokesman Tommy Piggott did not elaborate on the details of the “alternative options.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is next to an image of Palestinians in northern Gaza. (Reuters)
“At this point, there’s nothing to preview,” Piggott told reporters.
Piggott was also asked whether the US would work within the Doha framework to advance the framework that includes representatives from Egypt, Qatar, Hamas, Israel and the United States, but he similarly did not share any details on that aspect.
“In the end, the special envoy’s statement speaks for itself, but I think the broader context here is also important. Hamas, which existed on October 7th, first broke the ceasefire, and another, where the special envoy reveals, and not act to achieve the ceasefire again. “So, again, this question was not our commitment to a ceasefire. It was Hamas. They showed it over and over again, and showed it once more.”
Palestinian terrorist group Hamas says Trump’s plan for the US to rebuild Gaza is “a recipe to create chaos and tension in the region.” (AP/Alex Brandon/Majdi Fathi/Nurphoto via Getty Images)
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“Israel has been accepting transactions at the table for a long time, but Hamas has been rejecting them for a long time,” he added.
During a press conference at the State Department on Thursday, the agency also confirmed that the United States will not participate in the upcoming UN conference, which discusses two potential state solutions between Israelis and Palestinians.
Fox News’ Efrat Lachter contributed to this report.
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