Israel
Israel Briefing Day 520: ‘Long-term truce real close,’ says US negotiator
Plus, Israel-US intelligence sharing reportedly at risk due to Trump’s Russia stance
March 10, 2025 08:57
By, In Israel
4 min read
Plus, Israel-US intelligence sharing reportedly at risk due to Trump’s Russia stance
March 10, 2025 08:57ByNathan Jeffay, In Israel
This story first appeared as today’s Israel briefing newsletter. You can sign up to receive it daily here.
The White House hostage negotiator who held direct talks with Hamas says he believes a long-term truce between Israel and the terror organisation is within reach. “I think something could come together within weeks,” Adam Boehler predicted in a CNN interview. “I believe there is enough there to make a deal between what Hamas wants and what they’ve accepted and what Israel wants, and it’s accepted.” His comments come as Israeli negotiators are head to Doha today, where talks are set to continue.
Describing the outlook as he sees it, Boehler said: “With respect to the Hamas situation, I do think there's hope. I think that Israel has done a wonderful, masterful job eliminating Hamas, Hezbollah, and a number of other enemies in the state that makes things possible that weren't possible before. And I think you could see something like a long-term truce, where we forgive prisoners, where Hamas lays down their arms, where they agree they're not part of the political party going forward. I think that's a reality. It's real close.”
Despite tensions, Boehler was positive about a potential agreement, saying: “There is a deal where they can get all of the [hostages] out, not just the Americans.”
Boehler confirmed that Israel has raised concerns about the direct channel, via Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, a senior aide to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Israel’s former ambassador to the US, who called to push back against his talks with Hamas. “I understand the consternation and the concern, and I wasn’t upset,” Boehler said. “At the same time, we’re the United States. We’re not an agent of Israel. We have specific interests at play.”
The interviewer noted that Boehler is a Jewish American and questioned how it felt sitting down with Hamas in light of that. Boehler said: “Meeting with people, whether they’re good people or bad people, is part of my job… It definitely feels a little odd knowing what they really are.”
After the interview, he wrote on X to emphasise that he regards the group with disdain, stating: “Hamas is a terrorist organization that has murdered thousands of innocent people. They are BY DEFINITION BAD people.” He threatened that “not a single Hamas member will be safe if Hamas doesn’t RELEASE ALL HOSTAGES IMMEDIATELY.”
Israel has halted electricity supply to a desalination plant in central Gaza, the only facility still receiving power from Israel. Energy Minister Eli Cohen announced yesterday that he had signed an order to “cut electricity to Gaza immediately,” which was widely assumed to impact the entire Gaza Strip until it was clarified that one desalination plant was affected. However, officials clarified that most of Gaza’s Israeli-made electricity was already cut off after 7 October, with residents relying on generators and solar power. The affected plant reportedly serves a large proportion of Gaza's population. Cohen framed the step as a way to pressure Hamas during hostage negotiations.
The Israeli government announced yesterday that it is establishing an office to promote the emigration of Palestinians from Gaza. The controversial initiative, led by the Defence Ministry and Prime Minister’s Office, comes amid growing calls from far-right ministers to encourage Palestinians to leave Gaza. They see their initiative as parallel to an anti-Trump plan for Gaza. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said the plan would be a “massive logistical operation” to relocate Gazans abroad.
Jewish organisations in North America have not risen to the task of campaigning for hostages, a former captive’s father has claimed. Jonathan Dekel-Chen, whose son Sagui was released from Hamas captivity, told The Jerusalem Post that major Jewish organisations did not take a strong enough stand. “History will also not look kindly on some, not all, of the leaderships of major Jewish organisations, in North America certainly,” he said, criticising their “inability, unwillingness, or fear” to challenge Israel’s government.
Most Israelis believe Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu should accept responsibility for Israel's vulnerability on 7 October 2023 and resign, a poll by the nonpartisan Israel Democracy Institute found. Some 48 per cent of respondents said he should resign immediately, with another 24.5 per cent saying he should step down after the war. Even among voters from Netanyahu’s natural right-wing supporters, 56.5 per cent backed his resignation. The survey also found that 73 per cent of Israelis support moving forward with a ceasefire and hostage deal.
Israeli universities have made plans to strike if the government follows through on its plan to fire the Attorney General, Gali Baharav-Miara. The university heads announced the planned step yesterday, amid claims that the government is undermining the independence of the judiciary by trying to fire its top legal adviser – the official who effectively blocks legislation that is regarded as unconstitutional. Education Minister Yoav Kisch dismissed the universities’ protest, arguing that democracy means “rule by the people, not bureaucrats.”
IDF spokesman Daniel Hagari has resigned, weeks after criticising legislation that the government was backing. The IDF has suspended a unit commander after soldiers were filmed pushing a Palestinian vehicle into a wadi near Hebron. The military called the act “severe conduct” that contradicts its values.
As the northern front cools down, schools reopened yesterday in the rocket-battered town of Kiryat Shmona. Parents expressed mixed emotions—they spoke to Hebrew media about a sense of relief at the return to routine but voiced concerns about the possibility of further attacks.
In a bizarre mission by Israeli law enforcement, police and wildlife officials have seized a lion cub and two monkeys that were being driven around the country as they were filmed for social media videos. The animals are being moved to a protected shelter. Scenes in the videos included a driver with the lion cub draped over his knee, and with a monkey on the dashboard as music blared. Even in Israel, where the driving style can be famously… creative… this is considered dangerous driving.