Several Arab countries announced on Friday their support for the initiative of the leaders of Egypt, Qatar and the United States calling on Israel and Hamas to resume ceasefire and prisoner exchange talks next week, calling for dealing with this initiative "positively" and "without delay."

This came according to statements and declarations issued by the ministries and foreign officials of the UAE, the Sultanate of Oman, Kuwait, Iraq and Lebanon, in light of the Israeli war on the Gaza Strip entering its 11th consecutive month.

For months, Egypt, Qatar and the United States have been leading indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas, but they have not resulted in an agreement due to Tel Aviv's rejection of Hamas's demand to end the war, withdraw its forces from Gaza and return the displaced Palestinians to the northern part of the Strip.

** Support and welcome

For its part, the Omani Foreign Ministry expressed the Sultanate's welcome of the joint statement issued by the leaders of Egypt, Qatar and the United States on Thursday evening, calling for reaching a ceasefire agreement in Gaza by resuming negotiations on it in Doha or Cairo next Wednesday or Thursday, stressing its "appreciation for the ongoing efforts being made to reach this agreement."

Muscat stressed "the importance of adhering to what was agreed upon (during the previous period of negotiations) and implementing it without any delay," calling on all parties to "resume urgent negotiations with the aim of achieving the desired results and alleviating the suffering of the Palestinian people."

In turn, the Kuwaiti Ministry of Foreign Affairs praised the content of the joint statement issued by the Emir of the State of Qatar, the President of the Arab Republic of Egypt, and the President of the United States, which stresses the need to put an end to the ongoing suffering of the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip, according to the Kuwait News Agency (KUNA).

The Kuwaiti Foreign Ministry affirmed, in a statement, the country's position in support of all efforts made to reach agreements that would stop the aggression on the Gaza Strip.

Kuwait praised the ongoing efforts made by Qatar, Egypt and the United States to reduce escalation and achieve security and stability in the region, according to the same statement.

The Iraqi Foreign Ministry also welcomed the joint statement of the three leaders, stressing that it "reflects a serious commitment on their part to resolving the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, and is an important step towards achieving stability in the region."

It stressed "Iraq's support for this international effort, and its call on all concerned parties to deal positively with this initiative."

Iraq also called for "resuming urgent discussions," expressing its readiness to "support any effort that serves the interests of enhancing security and peace in the region."

It expressed his hope that "these efforts will yield tangible results that will contribute to alleviating the suffering of the Palestinian people and ending the current crisis as soon as possible."

** New proposal

In the same vein, Lebanese Foreign Minister Abdullah Bou Habib announced, in a press conference on Friday, Beirut's support for the American-Egyptian-Qatari initiative to hold a meeting next week to stop the ceasefire in Gaza.

He said, "The Lebanese government joins the call to resume urgent discussions in Doha or Cairo to finalize the agreement and begin implementing it immediately."

Bou Habib pointed out that "the Lebanese government appreciates the importance of ending the ceasefire agreement and releasing the hostages and detainees."

He stressed that "the Lebanese government believes that there is no room for further delay in reaching this agreement, and urges all concerned parties to accelerate the process of releasing the hostages, starting a ceasefire, and implementing the agreement without hesitation."

He pointed out that "the Lebanese government intends to support and submit a new proposal to complete the implementation of the other items (of the deal on the table) in a way that satisfies all concerned parties," without clarifying details about it.

In Abu Dhabi, UAE Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed announced in a statement that the UAE had joined the call made by the leaders of Qatar, Egypt and the United States “to reach an agreement to cease fire (in the Gaza Strip) and release hostages and detainees.”

According to the statement, the UAE urged "the concerned parties (Israel and Hamas) to respond to the call to resume urgent consultations on August 15, 2024."

She also expressed her "hope that no more time would be wasted by any of the parties."

She renewed her "deep appreciation and full support for the tireless mediation efforts undertaken by Egypt, Qatar and the United States to reach an agreement to end the tragic conditions in Gaza."

Yesterday, Thursday, the leaders of Egypt, Qatar and the United States considered, in their joint statement, that "the time has come to reach a ceasefire and conclude an agreement on the release of hostages and detainees."

They continued: "The three of us and our teams have been working hard for several months to reach a framework agreement, which is now on the table and all that is missing is finalizing the implementation details."

This agreement is based on the principles put forward by Biden on May 31, according to the statement of the three leaders.

The three leaders stressed in their statement that "no more time should be wasted and there should be no excuses by any party for another postponement."

They revealed that they "called on both sides (Israel and Hamas) to resume urgent discussions next Wednesday or Thursday in Doha or Cairo to close all remaining gaps and begin implementing the agreement without any new postponements."

The statement by the leaders of Egypt, Qatar and the United States comes about a week after the assassination of Hamas political bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh in the Iranian capital, Tehran, which cast a negative shadow over the possibility of resuming negotiations to stop the war on Gaza and exchange prisoners.

At the end of last May, Biden presented the terms of a deal offered to him by Israel "to stop the fighting and release all the kidnapped (Israeli prisoners in Gaza)," and Hamas accepted it at the time, according to Hebrew media.

But Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu added new conditions that both Defense Minister Yoav Galant and Mossad chief David Barnea said would hinder the deal.

These conditions included preventing the return of what he called "Palestinian militants" from the south of the Gaza Strip to its north by inspecting returnees at the Netanzarim axis, which the Israeli army established near Gaza City and separates the north of the Strip from its south, and the Israeli army remaining at the Philadelphi axis on the border between Gaza and Egypt, which it announced its control over on May 29.

Since October 7, 2023, Israel, with American support, has been waging a devastating war on Gaza, leaving more than 131,000 dead and wounded, most of them children and women, and more than 10,000 missing.

Tel Aviv continues this war, ignoring the UN Security Council's decision to stop it immediately, and the International Court of Justice's orders to take measures to prevent acts of genocide and to improve the humanitarian situation in Gaza.