JERUSALEM – Hopes for a ceasefire appeared complicated on Wednesday, with Israel and the Hamas movement that runs Gaza exchanging accusations of delaying the agreement. In recent weeks, the two sides appeared to be moving toward reaching an agreement that would return dozens of hostages held by militants in Gaza, but disagreements have emerged.
Although Israel and Hamas have expressed optimism about progress toward an agreement, sticking points remain over hostage exchanges with Palestinian prisoners and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, people involved in the talks say.
On Wednesday, Hamas accused Israel of setting new conditions related to the withdrawal from Gaza, prisoners, and the return of the displaced, which it said would delay the agreement.
The Israeli government accused Hamas of reneging on the understandings that had already been reached. However, both sides said discussions are continuing.
The Israeli negotiating team, which includes members of the intelligence agencies and the military, returned from Qatar on Tuesday evening to conduct internal consultations, after a week of what it called “important negotiations.”
Israel says about 100 hostages remain in Gaza, and it believes at least a third of them are dead.
In other developments, a child died as a result of hypothermia during the night in Gaza. Doctors said that the three-week-old baby was the third child to die from the cold in Gaza camps in recent days.
Tuesday night temperatures dropped to 48 degrees.
Ahmed Al-Farra, director of the pediatric ward at Nasser Hospital in Khan Yunis, confirmed that the girl died due to hypothermia. He said that two other children, less than a month old, were taken to hospital in the past 48 hours after they died of hypothermia.
