Watan–Hebrew media reported that the Israeli occupation army recently approved several plans for a rapid withdrawal of its forces from large parts of the Gaza Strip amid progress in prisoner exchange negotiations. The Hebrew newspaper Haaretz reported on its website Saturday that the occupation army “recently approved several plans for a rapid evacuation of large parts of the Gaza Strip, in light of progress in negotiations for the release of prisoners.”
The newspaper indicated that “these plans will allow the army to implement any agreement approved by the political level, including agreements that require the immediate evacuation” of its forces from the Gaza Strip. Earlier on Saturday, the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated that Israel would send a delegation headed by Mossad Chief David Barnea to Qatar to continue talks on a potential agreement for the release of detainees in Gaza.
The statement added that Netanyahu held discussions with the Minister of Security, security agency leaders, and representatives from both the Biden and Trump administrations regarding the exchange deal. The head of Mossad is accompanied by Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar, Major General (res.) Nitzan Alon, and his advisor for civil affairs, Ofer Beilich. This follows a visit by Steve Witkoff, the envoy of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, who met with Netanyahu and expressed optimism about the possibility of reaching a deal soon.
According to reports, Witkoff noted that “the main obstacle lies in Hamas’s skepticism about American commitments, especially with the approaching change of administration” on January 20, when Trump will take office. Sources revealed that 90% of the details of the potential prisoner exchange deal have already been agreed upon.
Sources mentioned that “efforts are expected to intensify among all parties in the coming days to reach an agreement before Trump takes office, especially given his repeated threats, reaffirming that ‘if the prisoners are not returned to their homes, the Middle East will witness unprecedented consequences.'”
On Saturday, a Hamas leader confirmed that the final proposal for a ceasefire in Gaza has been completed. The leader added that there are arrangements among the mediators to announce the agreement, noting that everyone is now waiting for the envoy of Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu to Doha to deliver his approval of the final amendments, after which a press conference will be held by the three mediators—Qatar, Egypt, and the United States—to announce the details of the agreement, its timeline, and the date it will go into effect.
Reports also indicated that the proposed ceasefire agreement for Gaza includes a full withdrawal from the Salah al-Din (Philadelphi) axis on the last day of the agreement’s stages. According to this proposal, the first phase involves a partial withdrawal of Israeli occupation forces, while the second phase involves the presence of Israeli monitoring points. The final day of the third phase includes the full withdrawal of the Israeli occupation army.
A Palestinian source familiar with the negotiations confirmed that the circumstances surrounding the ceasefire efforts in Gaza are different from all previous attempts, noting that the technical committees from all parties and mediators have completed preparing the agreement, which is ready for implementation within 24 hours of Netanyahu’s approval.
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