Israel has made a proposal to Hamas through Qatari and Egyptian mediators that includes up to a two-month pause in fighting as part of a multi-phase deal that would include the release of all remaining hostages in Gaza, two Israeli officials said.
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Although the proposal does not include an agreement to end the war, it is the longest period of truce that Israel has offered to Hamas since the beginning of the war.Axios“.
More than 130 hostages from Israel are still in Gaza. Israeli officials say several dozen hostages died on October 7 (when the Hamas attack that initiated Israel’s subsequent aggression on Gaza began) or in the weeks since.
President Biden’s adviser, Brett McGurk, traveled to Egypt on Sunday and will then continue to Qatar for talks aimed at advancing negotiations to release hostages held by Hamas.
Qatari and Egyptian mediators have been trying for weeks to bridge the gap between the sides to make progress towards an agreement.
US officials have said that reaching such an agreement could be the only path that could lead to a cease-fire in Gaza.
Two Israeli officials said Israel’s war cabinet approved the parameters of a new hostage deal proposal 10 days ago, which differ from past aspects of the deal rejected by Hamas.
Israeli officials are awaiting a response from Hamas, but have indicated they are cautiously optimistic about the ability to make progress in the coming days.
According to the proposal, the deal would include the release of all remaining living hostages and the return of the bodies of the dead hostages in several stages. In the first phase, women, men over the age of 60 and hostages who are in critical health will be released, officials said.
The next stages would include the release of female soldiers, male non-soldiers under the age of 60, Israeli male soldiers and the bodies of hostages.
The officials said Israel would propose that the total pause period to complete the release of all the hostages in various stages could reach two months.
Under the proposed deal, Israel and Hamas would agree in advance how many Palestinian prisoners would be freed for each Israeli hostage in each category, and then separately negotiate the names of those prisoners, officials said.
Israeli officials said the proposal included redeploying the Israel Defense Forces to move some from the enclave’s main population centers and allow the gradual return of Palestinian civilians to Gaza City and the northern Gaza Strip while the deal is being implemented.
Israeli officials said the proposal made it clear that Israel would not agree to end the war and will not agree to release all 6,000 Palestinian prisoners from Israeli prisons.
White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters Monday that President Biden supports a pause in the fighting that would allow the hostages to be released and more humanitarian aid to enter Gaza.
If the agreement succeeded, the Israeli army’s operations in Gaza would be significantly smaller in scope and intensity after the two-month pause in fighting, the same sources said.
(MONDO/Axios)