US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Qatar on Thursday for discussions with the key mediator in the Gaza conflict, seeking momentum for a cease-fire following Israel’s killing of Hamas’ leader.
After seeing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem, Blinken flew to Saudi Arabia and then Qatar, where he would meet with Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani to assess Hamas’ position on a truce.
Blinken is making his 11th trip to the region since the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack on Israel, despite previous disappointments, as he strives to stop Israel’s military campaign in the Gaza Strip.
But just days before the US elections, President Joe Biden found new optimism after Israel killed Hamas commander Yahya Sinwar in Gaza.
US officials had branded Sinwar as uncooperative in negotiations facilitated by the US, Qatar, and Egypt for a truce that would also result in the release of prisoners from Gaza.
Blinken stated that he spoke with Israeli leaders “about the importance of determining whether Hamas is prepared to engage in moving forward, and the Egyptians, the Qataris are doing just that”.
“But I believe that with Sinwar gone, because he was the primary obstacle for realising the hostage agreement, there is a real opportunity to bring them home and to accomplish the objective,” Blinken told reporters Wednesday as he left Israel.
Critics say the issue was not just Hamas but the Biden administration failing to press Israel, which has received a near continuous flow of billions of dollars in US weapons.
‘New frameworks’
Hamas has yet to choose a successor to Sinwar.
Two Hamas insiders told AFP this week that the party was considering a Doha-based ruling committee rather than a single heir.
Blinken said a ceasefire plan proposed by Biden on May 31 remained on the table, but he also indicated at a willingness to explore “new frameworks” to secure the release of 97 hostages, including 34 confirmed dead, who had been held by extremists in Gaza since October 7, 2023.
Blinken is also seeking greater clarity on a plan for Gaza’s rehabilitation and post-war administration, which he sees as a critical component of efforts to end the conflict.
Hamas took complete control of Gaza after an election in 2007, and has maintained an office in Qatar for more than a decade, originally with the support of Israel and the United States.
The office has permitted communication with the group, whose main supporter is US arch-nemesis Iran, with Qatar — a small regional player with a significant US base — channeling funds to sustain Hamas’ control of impoverished Gaza.
Following the bloodiest attack in Israel’s history on October 7, the country swore to eliminate Hamas and return the hostages.
Israel is also accused of assassinating Hamas’ Qatar-based senior leader, Ismail Haniyeh, while he was visiting Iran in July.