Hamas Rejects Latest Israeli Ceasefire Proposal: Details and Implications
Watan-Reuters quoted Hamas leader Ali Baraka on Monday as saying that the movement rejected the latest Israeli proposal presented during talks in Cairo to halt the ceasefire.
The agency continued in its urgent report that an official from Hamas had earlier informed them that no progress had been made in the negotiations.
Ceasefire proposal in three stages
Earlier on Monday, Agence France-Presse reported that the Palestinian movement was considering a ceasefire proposal in three stages lasting six weeks, with the first stage including the release of Israeli women and children prisoners held by the resistance in exchange for the release of up to 900 Palestinian detainees.
Axios reported that three Israeli officials stated that CIA Director Bill Burns presented a new proposal in Cairo on Sunday to push for an agreement between Israel and Hamas, “which would ensure the release of about 40 prisoners held in Gaza in exchange for a six-week ceasefire.”
The deal includes releasing at least 700 Palestinian prisoners, including more than 100 serving life sentences, according to the American website’s report.
#UPDATE Hamas says it is studying a proposal for a truce and hostage-prisoner swap, as Israel’s defence minister says it is the right time for a deal.
While negotiations continue, Israeli PM Netanyahu says a date is set for sending troops into Rafah https://t.co/87Qw76eS3B pic.twitter.com/2fLk49M2zJ
— AFP News Agency (@AFP) April 8, 2024
Burns met in Cairo on Sunday with the head of Israeli Mossad, Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, and Egyptian intelligence chief Abbas Kamel in an attempt to break the deadlock in negotiations.
A large Hamas delegation was also present in Cairo at the same time, holding separate meetings with Egyptian and Qatari mediators.
A spokesperson for the Qatari Foreign Ministry described the meetings in Cairo as “encouraging.” Israeli officials told Axios that Burns’ proposal is based on conditions discussed during previous negotiations in March.
Israel is pressuring Hamas to give up this condition
According to the American proposal, Hamas – according to Axios – must give up the number and identity of prisoners it wants to release from Israeli prisons and provide a list of forty Israeli hostages who can be released in return.
Under the same proposal, Israel must make concessions regarding the return of displaced Palestinian civilians to the northern Gaza Strip.
Stages of proposed agreement implementation
The proposal reported by Agence France-Presse states that in the first stage, 42 Israeli hostages (including soldiers, children, and elderly) would be released in exchange for 800 to 900 Palestinians detained in Israeli prisons, including about a hundred serving long sentences including life imprisonment.
According to the source, the first stage also includes the return of displaced Palestinian civilians to the northern Gaza Strip with the allowance of entry for between 400 and 500 aid trucks daily. In the second stage, all other hostages would be released.
The third and final stage calls for the complete withdrawal of the Israeli occupation army from the Gaza Strip and the lifting of the blockade on the territory.
The death toll from the ongoing Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip has risen to 33,175 martyrs and 75,886 wounded, the majority of whom are women and children.
The unprecedented Israeli aggression on Gaza continues, causing destruction to infrastructure and an unprecedented humanitarian crisis, threatening even greater disasters if the war does not stop and the blockade on the besieged territory is not lifted.
