Egypt would have frozen its role as a mediator with the Palestinian factions to seek a solution to the war in the Gaza Strip, after the assassination of the number two in the Hamas political office, Saleh al Arouri, on the outskirts of Beirut, Palestinian and Egyptian sources told Efe this Wednesday.
“Egypt officially informed Israel that it has frozen its role as a mediator between Israel and the Palestinian factions to conclude an agreement leading to the end of the war” after the assassination of Saleh al Arouri yesterday, Tuesday, stated the sources, who requested anonymity due to the sensitivity of this issue.
According to sources, The Hamas and Islamic Jihad movements also informed Cairo of the suspension of negotiations with Israel for a ceasefire.
So far, Egypt has not formally communicated this step.
(Also read: 9-year-old girl became a journalist during the war between the Israeli Army and Hamas)
The Egyptian authorities confirmed last week that in their role as mediator they presented a three-phase plan, which they did not break down, to reach an agreement to end the war in Gaza after different Palestinian delegations passed through Cairo.
Palestinian and Egyptian sources familiar with the conversations assured Efe, on condition of anonymity, that Egypt proposed to Hamas and Islamic Jihad a “Palestinian national dialogue” to end the division between the factions and form a “technocratic government” in the West Bank and Gaza.
The leader of the Lebanese Shiite group Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, during a meeting with the head of Hamas, Saleh al-Aruri, assassinated by Israel.
Hezbollah's Media Office / AFP
This government would oversee the reconstruction of the Strip and pave the way for Palestinian parliamentary and presidential elections, they said.
This proposal is the second point of the three-axis plan and whose ultimate objective is to achieve the definitive cessation of the attacks on the enclave and the withdrawal of the Israeli Army.
The first axis of the plan would be a two-week truce in exchange for the release of 40 Israeli and 120 Palestinian hostages, according to sources.
(Also: Is Israel preparing third phase of the war in Gaza? Announces withdrawal of thousands of soldiers)
The truth is that the death of Saleh Al Aruri revives fears of a regional conflagration more than two months after the start of the war between Israel and Hamas.which has ruled Gaza since 2007.
The number two of Hamas, exiled in Lebanon, died this Tuesday along with his bodyguards in a bombing attributed to the Israeli army in the south of Beirut, bastion of the pro-Iran Hezbollah movement.
The Lebanese national news agency (Ani) reported that at least seven people were killed in the bombing, carried out with a drone.
The head of Hamas, Ismail Haniyeh, called the attack a “terrorist act” and assured that the Palestinian movement “will never be defeated.”
Building hit by an Israeli attack against Hamas number two, Saleh al-Aruri.
Haniyeh, in turn, claimed that two leaders of the Ezedin al-Qassam brigades, the military wing of Hamas, had been killed in the attack, along with four other leaders of the group.
Israel seeks to drag Lebanon into a new phase of confrontation
Hezbollah, an ally of Hamas and backed by Iran, warned that Aruri's “murder” “will not go unanswered or unpunished.”
Through his death, Israel “seeks to drag Lebanon into a new phase of confrontation,” said Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati.
(Keep reading: Israel warns that war against Hamas in Gaza 'will continue throughout 2024')
In the same line, The Prime Minister of the Palestinian Authority, Mohammad Shtayyeh, warned of the “risks and consequences that could arise” from this “crime.” perpetrated by known criminals.
The border between Israel and Lebanon was the scene of almost daily exchanges of fire between the Israeli army and Hezbollah since the start of the war. But it is the first time that a bombing has hit the surroundings of Beirut since October 7. It is also the first time that such a high-ranking Hamas leader has been killed since the beginning of the conflict.
The Israeli army, for now, stated that it is “prepared for any scenario” after the assassination in Lebanon of Hamas' number two.
The armed forces are “in a very high state of alert in all areas, both in defense and attack. We are highly prepared for any scenario,” declared Israeli military spokesman Daniel Hagari, without directly commenting on the assassination of Saleh al Aruri. ,
*With EFE and AFP
#Egypt #frozen #mediation #Israel #Hamas #death #Saleh #Arouri
