Israel and Hamas also marked the weekend that efforts to renew a ceasefire in Gaza were in progress, less than two weeks after the distribution of a temporary truce and the repetition of Israeli’s air campaign and territory.
Hamas said on Saturday that she had accepted a proposal for a new ceasefire, which would see some hostages released from captivity to Gaza. Israel also said it had received a proposal through third -party mediators and had responded with a confrontation with the United States.
“Military pressure is working,” Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, said on Sunday at the beginning of his weekly meeting of his cabinet, adding that Israel “suddenly sees cracks” in Hamas.
As Israel reiterated the attacks on the Gaza Strip on March 18, more than 900 people were killed, the Enclave health ministry said on Saturday. The ministry does not distinguish citizens and fighters.
None of the sides published details of the proposal or the controversy, but an employee informed of the talks suggested that they have generally repeated prior sentences in recent weeks. While there was no indication that it was imminent in significant discovery, public statements suggested that after weeks of fruitless negotiations, contacts for an agreement even went ahead when the war continued.
On Sunday, Palestine’s Red Crescent company said it had recovered the bodies of eight medical emergency techniques, five civil defense staff and UN officials in Rafah in southern Gaza. The medical organization said it had lost contact with nine crew members a week before the direct launch of the Israeli forces. The Israeli army did not immediately respond to a request for comments.
What did Hamas say?
Khalil Al-Hayya, Hamas’s senior employee and negotiator, said in a speech on Saturday that his team had received a proposal two days earlier than Katari’s intermediaries and intermediaries for a renewed ceasefire, adding that Hamas “
It does not describe the terms in detail, but recent negotiations, including an unusual round of direct conversations between our officials and Hamas, focused on ensuring the liberation of Edan Alexander, the only Israeli American hostage and other American hostages.
This was a non -initial Israel, which required the release of 10 or 11 living hostages to extend seven weeks of the temporary ceasefire, based on a previous proposal attributed to the Venetian of the White House Steve Witkoff.
What did Israel say?
Following Mr Al-Hayya’s speech on Saturday, Mr Netanyahu said he had held a series of consultations on Friday after receiving the proposal, according to a statement from his office. Israel had sent objections to mediators a few hours earlier, the statement added.
An employee who was informed of the talks, who was talking about the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive diplomacy, said Israel was still pursuing the release of 10 hostages for any repetition of the cease and that Egypt was behind it.
Up to 24 hostages live in Gaza, according to Israel, along with the ruins of another 35 people. They were among the approximately 250 people who became prisoners during the deadly attack under Hamas’ leadership in Israel in October 2023 that triggered the war.
What are the main stuck points?
In addition to the agreement on the numbers of hostages and the Palestinian prisoners to be released, any renewed ceasefire will probably be indefinite, since both sides remain in contrast to more fundamental issues-including incompatible demands for the future.
Mr Al-Hayya said Hamas pledged to reach an agreement that would guarantee a permanent ceasefire and the complete withdrawal of the Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip, general terms that the sides had already agreed to expand.
“We don’t want anything new,” Mr Al-Hayya said on Saturday. “We want to respect what has been signed, what guaranteed and what the international community approved.”
Israel has regulated the end of war in Hamas, defining its rule and resignation from the rule to Gaza. Mr Al-Hayya said the group’s “resistance weapons” were a “red line”, since Israel occupies Palestinian land.
What has changed?
Israel and Hamas have accused the other for the collapse of the first phase of the ceasefire that came into force in mid -January.
But both are now facing increased pressure to renew the truce.
When the first phase of the ceasefire ended in early March, Israel stopped entry of all commercial goods and humanitarian aid to Gaza, exacerbating the conditions for an already exhausted population in an effort to force Hamas to accept a temporary expansion.
More than 50,000 gazans have been killed so far in the war, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health, And much of the enclave is in ruins.
Protests have erupted from Hamas to Gaza. An activist in the protest movement said she was worried that Hamas could accept another temporary ceasefire so that her security forces could hide and break the protesters without fear of attacking Israel.
Mr Netanyahu has also undergone domestic pressure. Many Israelis accused him of not prioritizing hostages and extending the war to Gaza to keep far -right members of his ruling coalition to secure his political survival.
“We are determined to bring home hostages,” Mr Netanyahu said on Sunday, rejecting the popular criticism. “The combination of military pressure and diplomatic pressure is the only thing that will bring the hostages back,” he added.
