Qatar-We Are Not Near To A Gaza Ceasefire

Wires carrying comments from a Qatari Foreign Minstry spox regarding the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza. Says that "Qatar's efforts to establish a Gaza ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas continue, but the situation on the ground is complicated." Says that negotiations continue in Doha and Cairo, adding "We are not near to a Gaza ceasefire deal, but remain hopeful." Spox: "Qatar is working to establish a permanent ceasefire in Gaza and not a short-term truce of a few days length."

• Over the weekend, the WSJ reported that Qatar was threatening to oust Hamas leaders from their base in Doha if their leaders in Gaza do not agree to a ceasefire. Senior Hamas official Husam Badran denied such a threat had been made.
• The assessment comes as the Israeli gov't risks losing the diplomatic and some military support from the US over the potential IDF assault on Rafah. Barak Ravid at Axios: "U.S. officials say an Israeli military operation in Rafah would likely lead to a significant shift in U.S. policy — including an end to the defense of Israel at the United Nations and restrictions on the use of U.S. weapons by Israeli Defense Forces in Gaza."
• An immediate move on Rafah appears unlikely "...before the end of Ramadan in mid-April. The Israeli war cabinet hasn't given an order to the IDF to start evacuating Palestinian civilians from Rafah. If and when an order is given, it would take another two to three weeks to implement."