The Turkish Foreign Minister discusses with his American counterpart the proposal for negotiations between Hamas and Israel

Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan discussed with his American counterpart Anthony Blinken the latest proposal that was put forward in the negotiations between Hamas and Israel. Turkish diplomatic sources said that the two Ministers held a phone call in which they discussed what was being proposed regarding the ceasefire in Gaza and the latest developments in the ongoing negotiations in this direction. Last night, US President Joe Biden announced that Israel had presented a three-stage proposal that includes a ceasefire in Gaza, the release of detainees, and the reconstruction of the Strip. Biden urged Hamas to accept the Israeli proposal, and also urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to "avoid pressure from members of his ruling coalition who oppose the proposal." However, the Israeli Prime Minister's Office said in a statement published shortly after Biden presented the proposal that Netanyahu "insists on not ending the war on the Gaza Strip until all its goals are achieved." With the mediation of Egypt a nd Qatar and the participation of the United States, Israel and Hamas have been conducting faltering indirect negotiations for months, while the Israeli war on Gaza has continued since last October 7. Netanyahu insists on a temporary ceasefire, without ending the war or withdrawing from the Gaza Strip, while Hamas demands an end to the war, the withdrawal of the Israeli army, the return of the displaced, intensification of relief, and the start of reconstruction, within any prisoner exchange agreement. The Israeli war on Gaza left more than 118,000 Palestinians dead and wounded, most of them children and women, and about 10,000 missing amid massive destruction and famine that claimed the lives of hundreds of children and the elderly. Israel continues this war, ignoring a Security Council resolution demanding that it stop the fighting immediately, and orders from the Court of Justice demanding that it stop its attack on Rafah, and take immediate measures to prevent acts of 'genocide' and 'improve the humani tarian situation' in Gaza. Source: National Iraqi News Agency