Israel has no new proposals to present for discussion, but is nevertheless willing to consider a time-limited ceasefire during which released 33 hostages instead of the originally proposed 40, a Reuters source said. “There are currently no hostage negotiations between Israel and Hamas, and we have no new Israeli offer in this regard. What we have is an attempt by Egypt to resume talks with an Egyptian proposal that would see the release of 33 hostages — women, elderly and sick people,” he added.
According to local media reports, Israeli intelligence officers believe that the said group of hostages it counts 33 people out of a total of apparently 129 that Hamas and other radical Islamist groups in the Gaza Strip have detained since October 7, when they killed 1,200 people and kidnapped another 253 in the Israeli border area. During the only ceasefire so far, at the end of November, Hamas released 105 hostages, most of them in exchange for Palestinian prisoners.
Unclear, how long a possible ceasefire would last, but if such a hostage exchange were to be agreed, the pause in fighting would be “certainly less than six weeks”, a Reuters source said. The last draft of the agreement, which failed to be concluded, called for the release of 40 hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners and a six-week ceasefire.
White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said today that he sees new momentum in the talks. “I think Qatar, Egypt and Israel have renewed their efforts to find a way forward,” Sullivan said in an interview with MSNBC. “Do I think these hostage negotiations have taken on new momentum, new life? I believe so,” he added.
The Axios server, citing two Israeli officials, wrote that the Israelis told their Egyptian counterparts today, that they are prepared to give hostage negotiations and a deal with Hamas a “last chance” before proceeding with the long-announced invasion of Rafah, cities in the south of the Gaza Strip near the border with Egypt.
A senior Hamas official, Basim Naim, told the AP ahead of a meeting of the Egyptian delegation in Israel that there was “nothing new” from Hamas. Friday meeting on Thursday was preceded by a call from the United States and 17 other countries for Hamas to pave the way for an end to the Gaza crisis by releasing all hostages. A movement that both the US and the EU labeled as a terrorist organization, responded by announcing that it did not intend to yield to international pressure.
In a statement today, Hamas said it was “open to any ideas or proposals that take into account the needs and rights of our people.” However, he insists on key demands that Israel rejects and criticizes the 18-state call for not calling for a permanent ceasefire and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, which are Hamas’ main conditions for any deal. At least 34,356 Palestinians have been killed and more than 77,000 injured in the Israeli offensive in Gaza since October 7, according to the latest figures from Hamas-controlled authorities.
According to Israeli media, the visit of the Egyptian delegation to Israel this week was preceded by a trip to Cairo by Shin Bet secret service chief Ronen Bar and army chief of staff Herci Halevi. Egypt fears an influx of Palestinian refugees into its territory if Israel actually launches a ground offensive in Rafah, where about 1.4 million people are hiding from the fighting. Cairo warns that an incursion into Rafah would have disastrous consequences for stability in the region, which is why it is becoming more and more actively involved in mediating ceasefire negotiations, as this could stop or at least delay the upcoming Israeli army operation.
“The Egyptians are really taking the initiative in this matter. Egypt wants to see progress, not least because it fears a possible operation in Rafah.” an official told Reuters. According to him, Qatar, previously the main mediator in the negotiations, remains increasingly aloof when it does not reflect Israel’s demands that expelled senior Hamas officials from its territory or froze their bank accounts. Ismail Hanija, the leader of the political wing of Hamas, has been staying in Qatar for a long time. But Hamas officials said they still see Qatar and Egypt as key mediators in negotiations with Israel.