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AFP reported on Thursday that sources familiar with the negotiations said Hamas is moving toward a deal on decommissioning its weapons as part of ongoing talks with mediators in Cairo. A diplomatic source told AFP that negotiators continue to advance the implementation roadmap that offers a balanced and pragmatic path forward, with all weapons decommissioned and a phased transition of responsibilities taking place to hand over full authority to the technocratic government. The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, added there would be no exceptions for certain weapons or certain people, insisting on one authority, one law, one weapon. The same source outlined that the roadmap would create a process for the elimination of all tunnels, depots of weapons and any weapons production facilities.
All weapons, heavy and light, will be under full control of the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza in coordination with and with the support of the international security force, according to the diplomatic source cited by AFP. A verification mechanism would ensure compliance by each side. The thorny issue of Hamas disarmament has been one of the key sticking points in advancing the ceasefire deal between Israel and the group that has been in place since October.
A Hamas source familiar with the talks told AFP that the movement is awaiting the Israeli response to the amendments the group recently submitted to the mediators. The amendments concerned two articles in the roadmap presented by the Board of Peace. The source said that some points were removed and alternatives proposed on the article concerning weapons, describing the group’s response as positive and good.
Sources close to Hamas told AFP the group is willing to confine and store heavy weapons under a Palestinian body rather than hand them over to Israel. The Palestinian movement wants Israel to commit to ending attacks on Gaza and withdrawing its forces. Hamas has not issued an official comment on the reported progress.
Despite the ceasefire, violence has continued in Gaza, with Israeli strikes killing at least four people including two children on Thursday, according to Gaza health officials cited by AFP. The latest deaths add to a toll of more than 1,200 Palestinians, mostly civilians, killed by Israeli attacks since the ceasefire took effect. Four Israeli soldiers have been killed in Gaza during the same period.
The Israeli military has continued to expand its occupation of parts of Gaza, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying Israel intends to expand the area under its control to 70 percent of the enclave, AFP reported. So far the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza has been based in Cairo without announcing a timeline for its entry into the territory. It remains unclear how many forces would be available to deploy with the planned international security force and whether Israeli troops would fully withdraw from the enclave.
