At the end of June, US President Donald Trump said he believes that a ceasefire in Gaza will agree to “along next week.” Four weeks later, the US suddenly pulled negotiators away from the meeting, with Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, saying the US will “consider alternative options for bringing hostages into the house.”
This is what has happened since then:
July 21st: An Israeli source told CNN that the talks are “moving slowly, but major obstacles have been resolved and that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is putting pressure on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to reach the US deal. Two other sources said the US has told Hamas it lacks patience, Hamas said it is carrying out every effort to reach the deal.
July 22nd: Secretary of State Marco Rubio told State Department spokesman Tammy Bruce he was “very optimistic” about the possibility of a ceasefire. Bruce said CNN Witkoff will travel to Qatar later in the week and will travel for discussion if the lecture reaches the advanced stage.
July 23rd: An Egyptian source told CNN that Hamas had submitted a response, but did not meet the mediator’s expectations. Another source said Hamas was told to resubmit the response and expressed pessimism about the armistice. Hamas later said it submitted a counterproposal.
July 24th: Several officials familiar with the speech told CNN that they are optimistic about Hamas reaching the deal after submitting its counter-proposed proposal. However, later that day, Israel said it was reminiscent of negotiators from Qatar. Following the lawsuit, Witkoff said Washington would “now look at alternative options.”
July 25th: Netanyahu said Witkov “has done it right” and Israel is also “considering alternative options.” Sources with direct knowledge of the talk told CNN that US pullbacks are “earthquakes.” However, a senior Israeli official said CNN’s speech was “no at all.” If Hamas revised its request for the number of prisoners to be released, there is still an opportunity for negotiations to resume.
July 27th: Trump denounced Hamas for the collapse of the ceasefire talks, saying that the militant group didn’t want to return the remaining prisoners. Hamas, meanwhile, said Gaza’s starvation crisis means “no point in continuing negotiations” under current conditions.
July 31st: Hamas has stopped engaging in discussions about ceasefires and hostage release negotiations, two sources familiar with the matter told CNN. Hamas said that although it is committed to negotiations, the humanitarian situation in the enclave needs to be improved for it to become involved again. A senior Israeli official said Israel and the United States are shaping new understandings about Gaza.
August 4th: Israeli officials said Netanyahu “sought the release of hostages through military defeat (in Hamas).”
August 8: Earlier on Friday morning, Israeli security ministers approved plans to occupy Gaza city, the prime minister’s office said.
