Details Awaited as Hamas Responds to Ceasefire Proposal

ISRAEL – Details are underway as Hamas responds to ceasefire proposal positively. Mediators on Friday delivered the Hamas’ response to proposal for a ceasefire in Gaza to Israel according to local reports.

“We have completed our internal consultations with Palestinian factions and forces regarding the mediators’ latest proposal to halt the aggression against our people in Gaza,” Hamas said earlier on Friday.

The source said that an Israeli delegation is expected to travel to Doha for negotiations on the implementation of the proposal, without giving a specific timeline.

Channel 12 has previously reported from a source that the negotiations in the Qatari capital “will not take more than a day and a half.”

Egypt, for its part, began conducting intensive contacts with various parties to resume indirect negotiations and to reach a final formula that is agreed upon by all parties, Egypt’s Al-Qahera el-Ekhbariya channel reported.

According to Israel’s public broadcaster KAN, Hamas insists on the three main demands – a return to the previous aid distribution mechanism, extending the ceasefire after the proposed 60-day period, and an actual withdrawal of the Israeli army forces from the Gaza Strip.

Reports from Israel indicate that the main challenge before the continuity of the talks will be the withdrawal of the Israeli army from the enclave, the Israeli Hayom newspaper reported.

The newspaper said that Israel seeks to maintain a presence on the Morag Axis, which separates Rafah from Khan Younis in southern Gaza, while Hamas demands a complete withdrawal.

Yedioth Ahronoth daily, citing unnamed Israeli officials, reported that US President Donald Trump may announce a ceasefire agreement in Gaza during his meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu next Monday.

Netanyahu is scheduled to travel to Washington to meet Trump, according to reports.

Hamas did not indicate details of the proposal in the statement, but Israeli and American media reported that the main provisions include Hamas releasing half of the living Israeli hostages, 10, in addition to the bodies of 18 prisoners in five phases during a 60-day ceasefire.

Israel would, in return, release a large number of Palestinian prisoners it holds and gradually withdraw forces from agreed-upon areas inside Gaza – a point that could cause division in Tel Aviv, which demands the disarmament of the Palestinian group and the exile of its leadership abroad.

Tel Aviv estimates that there are 20 Israeli hostages in Gaza, while more than 10,400 Palestinians are being held in its prisons, suffering torture, starvation and medical neglect that have led to the deaths of many, according to Palestinian and Israeli human rights and media reports.

Gaza War Ceasefire Deal Within Reach

President Donald Trump said a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas may be reached next week, following what he described as a “positive” response from the Palestinian resistance group to a US proposal, media reports said Friday.

“There could be a deal on a Gaza ceasefire by next week,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One, adding that he had not yet been briefed on the status of the negotiations, according to Arab News.

Hamas said it “has submitted its positive response” to Egyptian and Qatari mediators and was “fully prepared to immediately enter into a round of negotiations regarding the mechanism for implementing this framework.”

A Hamas official said the group seeks guarantees for a full withdrawal of Israeli forces and a lasting truce.

Trump reportedly promised that a 60-day ceasefire could be extended if needed.

The ceasefire push came amid continued violence.

At least 20 Palestinians were killed Friday while attempting to access aid, according to officials at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis.

The UN said 613 Palestinians have been killed in the last month while seeking food.

Israeli airstrikes on Gaza’s Muwasi area killed 15 people, including eight women and a child, according to local hospitals. Israel’s military said it was reviewing the incidents.

The current war began when Hamas-led militants attacked Israel, killing 1,200 people and taking around 250 hostages, on Oct. 7, 2023.

Gaza health officials said more than 57,000 Palestinians have since been killed.