The Israeli Broadcasting Corporation said, on Wednesday, February 7, 2024, that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave a green light for a ceasefire in Gaza during the transitional periods that separate the stages of the expected deal with the Hamas movement, without informing the war council in advance of his decision.

The authority explained by saying: “It was Qatar that requested a ceasefire during the progress between the (transitional) stages of the deal, so that negotiations between the two parties could continue during the transition from one stage to another.”

Cease-fire

The authority said: “It appears that the transitional period between the stages will last about a week, which means that the ceasefire agreed to by Netanyahu will last for a similar period from one stage to another.”

It added: “The Prime Minister agreed to the Qatari request in a conversation he held with Mossad Chief David Barnea while he was at the intelligence chiefs’ summit in Paris” last month.

The broadcasting authority continued: “According to sources familiar with the details of the discussions, the members of the Military Ministerial Council did not receive an update on this matter until after Netanyahu’s approval.”

It quoted the Prime Minister's Office as saying, "The Prime Minister's directives to the Mossad chief are permanent, and he shared them with all members of the War Cabinet and obtained their comments."

On January 28, a meeting was held in the French capital, Paris, with the participation of Israel, the United States, Egypt, and Qatar, to discuss a prisoner exchange deal and stop the war in Gaza, which will take place in three stages, according to Palestinian and American sources.

Qatar receives a response from Hamas

Yesterday, Tuesday, Hamas announced in a statement that it had delivered its response to Egypt and Qatar regarding the “framework agreement” for the prisoner exchange proposal and a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.

On Tuesday, Qatari Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdul Rahman Al Thani confirmed, in a press conference with his American counterpart, Anthony Blinken, that Doha had received Hamas’ response to the truce proposal in the Gaza Strip, which was “positive and includes observations.”

US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby also told reporters on Tuesday: “We believe that a serious proposal for a prolonged truce has been put forward, and we are still in the process of trying to sign and implement this proposal.”

On December 1, 2023, a temporary truce between Hamas and Israel ended, concluded with Qatari-Egyptian-American mediation, and lasted for 7 days, during which prisoners were exchanged and limited humanitarian aid was brought into the Strip, which is inhabited by about 2.3 million Palestinians.

Tel Aviv estimates that there are about 136 Israeli prisoners in Gaza, while it holds no less than 8,800 Palestinians in its prisons, according to official sources from both parties, but there is no confirmation of the final number from both parties.

Since October 7, 2023, the Israeli army has been waging a devastating war with American support on Gaza, which as of Tuesday left “27,585 killed and 66,978 injured, most of them children and women,” according to the Palestinian authorities, and caused “massive destruction and an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe.” According to the United Nations.