(MENAFN- The Peninsula) The Peninsula Online
Doha, Qatar: The Minister of State at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs HE Dr. Mohammed bin Abdulaziz bin Saleh Al Khulaifi recently spoke with CNN anchor Becky Anderson on the mediation role played by Qatar in talks between Israel and the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas).
In snippets of his interview, shared by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Minister of State touches upon various topics including the specific obligations of both parties, on the hostages who will be released, the aid that will be delivered, de-escalation, and seeking a longer ceasefire period in Gaza.
Here are the important points from the interview:
How does the deal work?
Al Khulaifi expounds on the systematic release of hostages on both sides, stating that on each day of the humanitarian pause, there will be an obligation to be fulfilled on each side.
"Each day we aim to have a number of releases because the number is big. We have managed to get the parties to agree on the releases, systematically," he told CNN.
He added: "In other words, there will be an organized schedule allowing the releases in each day."
The Minister further stated that "each party is quite familiar now with their obligations."
A minimum of 10 hostages will be released on day 1, stated the Minister to a question by CNN.
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Who will be released?
Al Khulaifi stated that the agreement [humanitarian pause] specifically focuses on civilian women and children on both sides.
"We hope that within the four days, we will be able to complete the release of women and children on both sides, moving to the safe side away from this war," Al Khulaifi said.
"By the first hour of the agreement, we will be notified of the official list of the people in each day, and by having that list we will ensure that we notify either the sides, the parties themselves, or even the countries that have their hostages in the Gaza strip currently," the Minister added.
Humanitarian aid
Regarding concerns about the flow of humanitarian aid to Gaza during the pause, Al Khulaifi stated: "This agreement has two major components. The first one is related to the release of the hostages, and the second one is related to providing not only quantity but also the quality of humanitarian aid and assistance as needed."
"One of the most interesting components within that humanitarian aid is the fuel. The fuel has been a debatable issue from the early times of the conflict. Now we have managed to secure fuel that will be provided for vital infrastructure such as hospitals and others," he added.
What comes after the humanitarian pause?
Qatar's efforts are ongoing, and it remains hopeful of the release of all hostages despite the various challenges.
When the CNN anchor raised a query about long-term ceasefire and release of all hostages held, Al Khulaifi added, "Our work is not done. We are still going to continue to talk more to both the parties to de-escalate and to seek a longer period of the ceasefire. Initially, the Israelis were not considering even a temporary ceasefire, but we will continue dialogues with both parties. Our goal is to work towards a more substantial objective, despite the current challenges in mediation."
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