A deal involving Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas has been mediated by Qatar and France. In exchange for humanitarian and medical aid for the most vulnerable citizens, the group will provide urgent medication to approximately 45 Israeli hostages that it is holding in Gaza.
The two nations announced that the supplies would be transported via the Rafah border crossing on Wednesday, departing from Qatar for Egypt.
According to a statement from Majed al-Ansari, the spokesperson for Qatar’s foreign ministry, the agreement would entail “delivering medicine along with other humanitarian aid to civilians in the Gaza Strip, in the most affected and vulnerable areas, in exchange for delivering medication needed for Israeli captives in Gaza.”
He did not specify how much or what kind of relief would be provided to people.
The heads of France’s foreign ministry crisis center, which coordinates relief efforts, Philippe Lalliot, had stated that talks had been ongoing for weeks and that the relatives of some of the Israeli prisoners had come up with the original concept.
Each of the 45 hostages would receive customized medical supplies produced in France that would last for several months. Ground coordination will be handled by the International Committee of the Red Cross.
According to Lalliot, there are still three French people being held in Gaza, but none of them require immediate medical attention.
