Bahrain crown prince calls for Hamas-Israel 鈥榟ostage trade鈥�

Bahrain鈥檚 Crown Prince and Prime Minister, Sheikh Salman bin Hamad Al-Khalifa attends the IISS Manama Dialogue in Manama, Bahrain. (Reuters)
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  • Prince Salman bin Hamad Al-Khalifa said security would not be realized without a two-state solution
  • Prince Salman, speaking at the IISS Manama Dialogue, also called for Palestinian elections once the war ends

MANAMA: The crown prince of Bahrain on Friday called for a 鈥渉ostage trade鈥� between Hamas and Israel in order to achieve a break in hostilities that he said could lead to an end to the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip.
Prince Salman bin Hamad Al-Khalifa also said that security would not be realized without a two-state solution, in which he described the US as 鈥渋ndispensable鈥� in achieving.
鈥淚t is a time for straight talking,鈥� he said, urging Hamas to release Israeli women and children held hostage in Gaza and for Israel in exchange to release from its prisons Palestinian women and children, who he described as non-combatants.
鈥淭he intention is to break so people can take stock, can bury their dead, people can finally start to grieve and maybe people can start to ask themselves about the intelligence failure that led to this crisis in the first place,鈥� he said
Qatar has been leading mediation efforts between Hamas and Israeli officials for the release of more than 240 hostages.
Bahrain established ties with Israel in 2020 under the US-brokered Abraham Accords, driven in part by shared concerns over Iran. Bahrain is an important security partner of the US, hosting the US Navy鈥檚 Fifth Fleet.
Prince Salman described the situation in Gaza as 鈥渋ntolerable鈥� and condemned both Hamas for its Oct. 7 attack and Israel for the 鈥渁ir campaign鈥� it launched in response.
He outlined what he said were red lines in the conflict, including the forced displacement of Palestinians, 鈥渘ow or ever,鈥� an Israeli reoccupation of Gaza, and a military threat from Gaza toward Israel.
Prince Salman, speaking at the IISS Manama Dialogue, also called for Palestinian elections, once the war ends, that would lead to a 鈥渏ust and lasting peace鈥� that he described as the establishment of an Palestinian state which he said would also lead to security and stability for Israel.
鈥淭his conflict has been an ongoing, open wound in the Middle East for the past 80 years,鈥� he said.
More than 12,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel鈥檚 assault on the coastal strip, according to Gaza health officials. Israeli authorities say 1,200 were killed on Oct. 7 and over 200 Israelis and foreign citizens taken hostage.
An exchange of hostages was the only way to achieve a necessary break in violence so that humanitarian aid like medicine, fuel to power medical machines, and food could be provided to the Palestinians in Gaza, Prince Salman said.