Hamas Chief Debates Cease-Fire, Hostage Swap in Cairo

Welcome back to World Brief, where we’re looking at Hamas talks in Egypt on an Israeli cease-fire, a rocky presidential election in Congo, and the European Union’s landmark migration deal.

Back to the Drawing Board

Top Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh traveled to Cairo on Wednesday to discuss the group’s ongoing war against Israel, including the possibility of establishing another cease-fire and renewing hostage negotiations. Egypt and Qatar continue to serve as prime intermediaries between Israel and Hamas.

Senior Israeli officials meeting recently with CIA Director William Burns and Qatari mediators in Warsaw suggested that Israel would consider a weeklong truce if Hamas released 40 hostages. Around 160 Israelis remain in captivity after more than 100 others were freed in late November during a weeklong cease-fire.

However, Basem Naim, a senior Hamas official, said both sides must agree to a complete cessation of hostilities before any more hostages are freed. Hamas also insists that Israel release a large number of Palestinian prisoners, including high-level militants—demands that Israel continues to reject. During the last prisoner swap, Israel freed around 240 Palestinians, mostly women and children.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu remains adamant that Israel’s war in Gaza will not end until Hamas is eliminated and Israeli hostages are freed. “All Hamas terrorists, from the first to the last, face death,” Netanyahu said Wednesday. “They have only two options: surrender or die.”

International pressure to secure a cease-fire continues to grow. On Wednesday, the United Nations Security Council convened for a third day to debate a draft resolution that would establish a truce in Gaza to allow humanitarian aid into the region. The United States, however, has threatened to use its veto power, pushing back against language that calls for a “cessation” in fighting. U.S. officials hinted that Washington may be open to a “suspension” of hostilities.

“President Biden, please, please intervene to stop this senseless carnage of innocent civilians in Gaza,” Francesca Albanese, the U.N. special rapporteur for the occupied Palestinian territories, wrote on X, formerly Twitter. She accused Israel of conducting an “extermination campaign” against Palestinians that violates international law. Nearly 20,000 Palestinians have been killed thus far, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry.

Meanwhile, both Israel and Hamas continue to launch attacks. Just 24 hours before Haniyeh traveled to Egypt, Hamas fired numerous rockets toward central Israel. That same day, Israel sent thousands of troops into Khan Younis, a southern Gaza city that Israel alleges is a Hamas stronghold. Israeli forces also took “operational control” of Jabaliya outside Gaza City on Tuesday, detaining around 500 people suspected of terrorist activity. Israel accused Hamas fighters of barricading themselves in schools, hospitals, and other civilian buildings.

Today’s Most Read

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• What Has Hamas Accomplished? by Daniel Byman and Delaney Duff

What We’re Following

Hourslong delays. The Democratic Republic of the Congo’s long-awaited presidential election got off to a rocky start on Wednesday. Polling stations opened hours after initially planned, long lines exacerbated security threats, and fighting among armed rebel groups prevented around 1.5 million people from voting. Election authorities announced Wednesday that voting would extend into Thursday for areas hit particularly hard by logistical challenges.

Incumbent President Félix Tshisekedi faces 18 other candidates, including millionaire Moïse Katumbi, who served as governor of Katanga province for eight years. However, the opposition’s fractured coalition suggests that Tshisekedi will secure a second, and final, term. The election has also been marred by accusations of poor transparency, especially after Congolese officials denied the East African Community’s election observers access to the polls. The European Union canceled its own mission after Kinshasa rejected its request to use satellite equipment to monitor the results.

Migrant and asylum pact. In a bid to better share migrant responsibility, the European Union passed an agreement on Wednesday that outlines how members can divide cost and hosting obligations. Countries not along a continental border must choose to either accept 30,000 asylum applications a year or pay at least 20,000 euros (about $21,870) per person into an EU fund. Screening processes will be sped up, and immigrants will be distinguished by their need for international protections.

Greece, Italy, and other countries most impacted by migration flows praised the deal, which they argued will force hesitant Eastern European nations to help bear the burden. Although Europe is nowhere near its 2015 migrant crisis, increased crossings via the Mediterranean have brought immigration concerns to the forefront of many residents’ minds. Wednesday’s deal was three years in the making.

Free at last. U.S. and Venezuelan officials announced a prisoner swap on Wednesday. Washington released Alex Saab, a close ally of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, in exchange for more than 30 people, including 10 Americans, according to a senior U.S. administration official. Saab, a Colombian-born businessman and Venezuelan special envoy, was charged in Florida in 2019 with money laundering and was arrested in 2020 while en route to Iran. He pleaded not guilty, and his lawyers have since been trying to get his case dismissed by claiming diplomatic immunity.

The swap signals another step toward improved U.S.-Venezuelan relations. On Oct. 17, Maduro agreed to hold fairer elections in 2024, when the country is set to vote for a new president. A day later, Washington celebrated the move by suspending some sanctions targeting the Maduro administration and Venezuela’s state-run oil company. The White House had previously said it would “pause” sanctions relief if prisoner talks did not progress.

Odds and Ends

Customs officials at Peru’s Jorge Chávez International Airport seized 4,001 live turtles en route to Indonesia recently after noticing discrepancies in the shipment’s documentation. Freshwater turtle eggs and meat are considered a delicacy in some parts of the world. The tiny reptiles are now being cared for at a breeding facility in Lima until officials determine their forever home.

Correction, Dec. 20, 2023: A previous version of this article misstated the gender of Francesca Albanese.