Sources from Hamas and other Palestinian factions revealed on Wednesday details of messages exchanged Tuesday evening between the negotiating delegation and Nikolay Mladenov, the senior representative for Gaza on the Peace Council, regarding the council's latest statement following his meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. In its statement, the council linked an Israeli withdrawal from Gaza to the complete disarmament of the territory, a position that some Palestinian factions viewed as a reversal of the agreement reached with mediators early last Friday. Two Hamas sources and a third source from a Palestinian faction participating in the Cairo negotiations told Asharq Al-Awsat that the negotiating delegation's message described the council's statement as a reversal of the agreement, saying it focused solely on the issue of weapons in a way the delegation considered misguided while failing to address the other core issues. The three sources, speaking separately, said the message argued that the Peace Council's statement was intended to appease the Israeli government, creating a dangerous impression about how the agreement would be implemented and handled once execution begins under an agreed timetable. The sources said Mladenov replied by stressing that no changes had been made to the agreement reached in Cairo on the 15-point roadmap. He said the purpose of his meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was to halt Israeli attacks and create conditions that would allow the agreement to move forward. Mladenov said the intensive Israeli attacks on Sunday had been serious and risked hardening positions, making immediate direct intervention necessary to stop the operations before they derailed everything that had been achieved. He stressed the importance of finding solutions to all challenges that could confront the agreement despite the difficult circumstances. On Wednesday morning, Bassem Naim, a member of Hamas' political bureau and its negotiating delegation, said the movement was still awaiting an official response from Mladenov regarding implementation of the second phase of the Cairo agreement on the roadmap, which had been agreed with him and the mediators. In a post on X, Naim said Hamas and the Palestinian factions had demonstrated a high degree of responsibility in responding to the proposals presented to them. He also welcomed the mediators' statement holding Israel responsible for the escalation and the deliberate obstruction of the agreement. The mediating countries in the Gaza ceasefire negotiations on Monday condemned Israel's continued violations in the Gaza Strip after a series of airstrikes on Sunday killed more than 20 Palestinians. On the ground, no unusual incidents were reported on Tuesday or Wednesday apart from several injuries, the latest occurring Wednesday morning when Israeli military vehicles opened fire toward tents housing displaced people in areas south of Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip. Israeli forces have intensified surveillance and armed drone flights across the Gaza Strip amid fears of surprise strikes similar to those carried out repeatedly in the past. Asharq Al-Awsat has obtained a circular distributed to members of the armed wings of Palestinian factions in Gaza instructing them to continue observing necessary security precautions and not lower their guard despite Israeli media reports that a 14-day truce is set to begin. Under the roadmap agreement, if all parties approve the plan, Israel will suspend its attacks for 14 days. During that period, negotiations will begin on a timetable covering all provisions of the second phase, while Israel will also be required to implement the first phase, including withdrawing to the original Yellow Line, which it significantly expanded deeper into Gaza over recent weeks and months. Israel has linked any withdrawal to the complete disarmament of Hamas and the Palestinian factions, while the roadmap states that the process will proceed step by step to ensure implementation of the agreement. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday that Israeli forces would not withdraw from their current positions in Gaza before Hamas was fully disarmed, adding that disagreements remained with the administration of US President Donald Trump over the issue. The US administration played a major role in securing the recent Cairo agreement between Hamas and the mediators after assuring the parties that it would guarantee implementation of the deal. Hamas has said the agreement was difficult for the movement to accept but that it agreed to it in order to save Palestinian lives.
