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Business Standard
22 minutes ago
- Politics
- Business Standard
Israel accepts US-backed Gaza truce plan, Hamas gives cool response
Israel has accepted a new US proposal for a temporary ceasefire with Hamas, the White House said Thursday. US President Donald Trump's special envoy, Steve Witkoff, expressed optimism earlier this week about brokering an agreement to halt the Israel-Hamas war and return more of the hostages captured in the attack that ignited it. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters that Israel backed and supported the new proposal. Hamas officials gave the Israeli-approved draft a cool response, but said they wanted to study the proposal more closely before giving a formal answer. The Zionist response, in essence, means perpetuating the occupation and continuing the killing and famine, Bassem Naim, a top Hamas official, told The Associated Press. He said it does not respond to any of our people's demands, foremost among which is stopping the war and famine. Nonetheless, he said the group would study the proposal with all national responsibility. Hamas had previously said it had agreed with Witkoff on a general framework of an agreement that would lead to a lasting ceasefire, a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, an influx of aid, and a transfer of power from the militant group to a politically independent committee of Palestinians. Here's what's known about the emerging negotiations that aim to bring about an extended truce in the war in exchange for hostages that remain in captivity: What do Israel and Hamas want? Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has refused to end the war until all the hostages are released and Hamas is either destroyed or disarmed and sent into exile. He has said Israel will control Gaza indefinitely and facilitate what he refers to as the voluntary emigration of much of its population. Palestinians and most of the international community have rejected plans to resettle Gaza's population, a move experts say would likely violate international law. Hamas has said it will only release the remaining hostages its only bargaining chip in return for more Palestinian prisoners, a lasting ceasefire and a full Israeli withdrawal. It has offered to give up power to a committee of politically independent Palestinians that could oversee reconstruction. Hamas is still holding 58 hostages. Around a third are believed to be alive, though many fear they are in grave danger the longer the war goes on. Thousands of Palestinians have been killed since Israel renewed its airstrikes and ground operations after ending a ceasefire in March. The dispute over whether there should be a temporary ceasefire to release more hostages as Israel has called for or a permanent one as Hamas wants has bedeviled talks brokered by the US, Egypt and Qatar for more than a year and a half, and there's no indication it has been resolved. What is the latest ceasefire proposal? Witkoff has not publicised his latest proposal, but a Hamas official and an Egyptian official independently confirmed some of the details. They spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive talks. They say it calls for a 60-day pause in fighting, guarantees of serious negotiations leading to a long-term truce and assurances that Israel will not resume hostilities after the release of hostages, as it did in March. Israeli forces would pull back to the positions they held during the ceasefire Israel ended that month. Hamas would release 10 living hostages and a number of bodies during the 60-day pause in exchange for more than 1,100 Palestinians imprisoned by Israel, including 100 serving long sentences after being convicted of deadly attacks. Each day, hundreds of trucks carrying food and humanitarian aid would be allowed to enter Gaza, where experts say a nearly three-month Israeli blockade slightly eased in recent days has pushed the population to the brink of famine. Why is it so hard to end the war? Hamas-led militants stormed southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting 251 hostages. More than half the hostages have been released in ceasefires or other deals. Israel has rescued eight and recovered dozens of bodies. Israel's ensuing military campaign has killed over 54,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not say how many of the dead were civilians or combatants. The offensive has destroyed vast areas of Gaza and displaced around 90% of its population of roughly 2 million Palestinians, with hundreds of thousands living in squalid tent camps and unused schools. Hamas has been vastly depleted militarily and lost nearly all of its top leaders in Gaza. It most likely fears that releasing all the hostages without securing a permanent ceasefire would allow Israel to launch an even more devastating campaign to ultimately destroy the group. Israel fears that a lasting ceasefire and withdrawal now would leave Hamas with significant influence in Gaza, even if it surrenders formal power. With time, Hamas might be able to rebuild its military might and eventually launch more Oct. 7-style attacks. Netanyahu also faces political constraints: His far-right coalition partners have threatened to bring down his government if he ends the war too soon. That would leave him more vulnerable to prosecution on longstanding corruption charges and to investigations into the failures surrounding the Oct. 7 attack. A broader resolution to the decades-old Israeli-Palestinian conflict appears more distant than ever. The Palestinians are weak and divided, and Israel's current government the most nationalist and religious in its history is opposed to Palestinian demands for a state in Gaza, the West Bank and east Jerusalem, territories Israel occupied in the 1967 Mideast war. The last serious peace talks broke down more than 15 years ago.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- General
- Yahoo
Hamas official says it rejects new US Gaza ceasefire plan backed by Israel
A senior Hamas official has told the BBC the Palestinian armed group will reject the latest US proposal for a new Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal. The White House said on Thursday that Israel had "signed off" on US envoy Steve Witkoff's plan and that it was waiting for a formal response from Hamas. Israeli media cited Israeli officials as saying it would see Hamas hand over 10 living hostages and the bodies of 18 dead hostages in two phases in exchange for a 60-day ceasefire and the release of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails. The Hamas official said the proposal did not satisfy core demands, including an end to the war, and that it would respond in due course. The Israeli government has not commented, but Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly told hostages' families on Thursday that he accepted Witkoff's plan. Israel imposed a total blockade on Gaza and resumed its military offensive against Hamas on 18 March following the collapse of a two-month ceasefire brokered by the US, Qatar and Egypt. It said it wanted to put pressure on Hamas to release the 58 hostages it is still holding, at least 20 of whom are believed to be alive. On 19 May, the Israeli military launched an expanded offensive that Netanyahu said would see troops "take control of all areas" of Gaza. The next day, he said Israel would also ease the blockade and allow a "basic" amount of food into Gaza to prevent a famine. Almost 4,000 people have been killed in Gaza over the past 10 weeks, according to the territory's Hamas-run health ministry. The UN says another 600,000 people have been displaced again by Israeli ground operations and evacuation orders, and a report by the UN-backed IPC warns that about 500,000 people face catastrophic levels of hunger in the coming months. Security breaks down in Gaza as desperate people search for food Israel PM says Hamas's Gaza chief Mohammed Sinwar has been killed Gaza warehouse broken into by 'hordes of hungry people', says WFP At a news conference in Washington DC on Thursday, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt was asked whether she could confirm a report by Saudi-owned Al-Arabiya TV that Israel and Hamas had agreed a new ceasefire deal. "I can confirm that Special Envoy Witkoff and the president submitted a ceasefire proposal to Hamas that Israel backed and supported. Israel signed off on this proposal before it was sent to Hamas," she said. "I can also confirm that those discussions are continuing, and we hope that a ceasefire in Gaza will take place so we can return all of the hostages home," she added. However, a senior Hamas official later said the deal contradicted previous discussions between the group's negotiators and Witkoff. The official told the BBC that the offer did not include guarantees the temporary truce would lead to a permanent ceasefire, nor a return to the humanitarian protocol that allowed hundreds of trucks of aid into Gaza daily during the last ceasefire. Nevertheless, he said Hamas remained in contact with the mediators and would submit its written response in due course. Earlier, Israel's Channel 12 TV reported the Netanyahu told hostages' families at a meeting: "We agree to accept the latest Witkoff plan that was conveyed to us tonight. Hamas has not yet responded. We do not believe Hamas will release the last hostage, and we will not leave the Strip until all the hostages are in our hands." His office later issued a statement accusing one of the channel's reporters of trying to "smuggle" a recording device into the room where the meeting took place. But it did not deny that he had agreed to the US proposal. Netanyahu has previously said that Israel will end the war only when all the hostages are released, Hamas is either destroyed or disarmed, and its leaders have been sent into exile. Hamas has said it is ready to return all of those held captive, in exchange for a complete end to hostilities and full Israeli pull-out from Gaza. Israel launched a military campaign in Gaza in response Hamas' cross-border attack on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage. Another four people, two of them dead, were already being held captive in Gaza before the conflict. So far, Israel has secured the return of 197 hostages, 148 of them alive, mostly through two temporary ceasefire deals with Hamas. At least 54,249 people have been killed in Gaza during the war, including 3,986 since Israel resumed its offensive, according to the territory's health ministry. On Thursday, at least 54 people were killed by Israeli strikes across Gaza, according to the Hamas-run Civil Defence agency. They included 23 people who died when a home in the central Bureij area was hit, it said. The Israeli military said it had struck "dozens of terror targets" over the past day.
Axios
4 hours ago
- Politics
- Axios
Hamas debating U.S. proposal for Gaza ceasefire, officials say
The White House is awaiting Hamas' response to the new Gaza hostage and ceasefire deal proposal President Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff presented on Wednesday night, but U.S. officials are sounding less optimistic about an imminent breakthrough than 24 hours earlier. Why it matters: White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Israel signed off on the proposal before Witkoff submitted it to Hamas. But some in the militant group believe that rather than meeting in the middle, Witkoff's offer included new concessions to Israel. "Discussions are continuing and we hope a ceasefire in Gaza will take place so that we can return all the hostages home. ... If a ceasefire comes into effect you will hear about it directly from me, from the president or from special envoy Witkoff," Leavitt said. Hamas said in a statement that it was still studying the proposal. But members of the group have expressed serious concerns about the lack of clear guarantees that Israel won't again unilaterally end the ceasefire, as it did in March, according to two sources with direct knowledge. Breaking it down: The new proposal for a 60-day ceasefire — under which President Trump would guarantee Israel's compliance — doesn't differ much from previous propositions. It involves the release of 10 live hostages and 18 deceased hostages held in Gaza — half on the first day and half on day 7 of the ceasefire. In exchange, Israel would release 125 Palestinian prisoners serving life sentences in Israel, another 1,100 Palestinians detained by the Israel Defense Forces in Gaza after Oct. 7, 2023, and the bodies of 180 Palestinians allegedly killed during attacks on Israelis. The IDF would redeploy its forces in Gaza in two phases, with the exact details to be negotiated by the parties ahead of the temporary ceasefire. Humanitarian aid to Gaza would be resumed through the UN and the Red Crescent. It's unclear what this means for the controversial new aid mechanism launched earlier this week. Behind the scenes: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told hostage families on Thursday that Israel is ready to move forward with a hostage and ceasefire deal in Gaza on the basis of Witkoff's proposal, according to a source who was in the meeting. Witkoff's new proposal was fully coordinated with Israel and was a result of his meeting with Netanyahu's confidant Ron Dermer at the White House on Tuesday, an Israeli official and a source with knowledge tell Axios. Zoom in: Witkoff's proposal includes a commitment that Trump would personally announced the temporary ceasefire and work to ensure that during those 60 days "good faith negotiations take place until a final settlement is reached." Those negotiations would focus on the number of Palestinian prisoners to be released in exchange for the remaining Israeli hostages, the terms of Israel's withdrawal from Gaza, and security arrangements and post-war governance in Gaza "with each side presenting its positions." The document says the parties must reach an agreement for a permanent ceasefire within 60 days. If an agreement is reached, the remaining hostages will be released. If not, the ceasefire can be extended by mutual consent. Friction point: While the proposal says the U.S., Qatar and Egypt would all guarantee serious negotiations take place for a permanent ceasefire, Hamas wanted much stronger guarantees from the U.S. that Israel wouldn't walk away again. Hamas officials saw those elements of the document as a shift in the U.S. position in Israel's favor, according to the two sources with direct knowledge. Hamas officials were also angered by the fact that the proposal didn't clearly state that Israeli forces must withdraw to the same lines as before the pervious ceasefire collapsed in March, the sources said. They also objected to the fact that the proposal didn't say that aid would be delivered exclusively through the previous channels and not through the newly launched Gaza Humanitarian Fund. What to watch: Hamas officials in Doha expressed frustration about the new proposal with several of them pushing to reject it. Other Hamas official argued the group should accept the proposal with additional conditions.
GMA Network
5 hours ago
- Politics
- GMA Network
US says Israel accepts Gaza ceasefire plan; Hamas cool to it
WASHINGTON/UNITED NATIONS/CAIRO - Israel has agreed to a U.S. ceasefire proposal for Gaza, the White House said on Thursday, and Hamas said it was reviewing the plan although its terms did not meet the group's demands. As a U.S.-backed system for distributing food aid in the shattered enclave expanded, Israeli media reported that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the families of hostages held in Gaza that Israel had accepted a deal presented by U.S. President Donald Trump's Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff. Netanyahu's office did not confirm the reports, but White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt told reporters in Washington that Israel had signed off on the proposal. She did not detail its contents. But the New York Times quoted an Israeli official familiar with the proposal as saying the initial phase would include a 60-day ceasefire and humanitarian aid flowing through U.N.-run operations. The Palestinian militant group Hamas said it was studying the proposal, and senior Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri told Reuters the group was still discussing it. But Abu Zuhri said its terms echoed Israel's position and do not contain commitments to end the war, withdraw Israeli troops or admit aid as Hamas has demanded. Deep differences between Hamas and Israel have stymied previous attempts to restore a ceasefire that broke down in March after only two months. Israel has insisted that Hamas disarm completely and be dismantled as a military and governing force and that all 58 hostages still held in Gaza must be returned before it will agree to end the war. Hamas has rejected the demand to give up its weapons and says Israel must pull its troops out of Gaza and commit to ending the war. Aid effort expands The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, a private group backed by the United States and endorsed by Israel, expanded its aid distribution to a third site on Thursday. Heavily criticized by the United Nations and other aid groups as inadequate and flawed, the group's operation began this week in Gaza, where the U.N. has said 2 million people are at risk of famine after Israel's 11-week blockade on aid entering the enclave. The aid launch was marred by tumultuous scenes on Tuesday when thousands of Palestinians rushed distribution points and forced private security contractors to retreat. The chaotic start to the operation has raised international pressure on Israel to get more food in and halt the fighting in Gaza. GHF has so far supplied about 1.8 million meals and plans to open more sites in the coming weeks. Witkoff told reporters on Wednesday that Washington was close to "sending out a new term sheet" about a ceasefire to the two sides in the conflict that has raged since October 2023. "I have some very good feelings about getting to a long-term resolution, temporary ceasefire and a long-term resolution, a peaceful resolution, of that conflict," Witkoff said then. Israel has come under increasing international pressure, with many European countries that have normally been reluctant to criticise it openly demanding an end to the war and a major relief effort. Israel launched its campaign in Gaza in response to the devastating Hamas attack in southern Israel on October 7, 2023, that killed some 1,200 people and saw 251 taken hostage into Gaza, according to Israeli tallies. The campaign has killed more than 54,000 Palestinians, Gaza health officials say, and left the enclave in ruins. — Reuters
Japan Today
5 hours ago
- Politics
- Japan Today
U.S. says that Israel accepts Gaza ceasefire plan; Hamas cool to it
By Gram Slattery, Michelle Nichols and Nidal al-Mughrabi Israel has agreed to a U.S. ceasefire proposal for Gaza, the White House said on Thursday, and Hamas said it was reviewing the plan although its terms did not meet the group's demands. As a U.S.-backed system for distributing food aid in the shattered enclave expanded, Israeli media reported that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the families of hostages held in Gaza that Israel had accepted a deal presented by U.S. President Donald Trump's Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff. Netanyahu's office did not confirm the reports, but White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt told reporters in Washington that Israel had signed off on the proposal. She did not detail its contents. But the New York Times quoted an Israeli official familiar with the proposal as saying the initial phase would include a 60-day ceasefire and humanitarian aid flowing through U.N.-run operations. The Palestinian militant group Hamas said it was studying the proposal, and senior Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri told Reuters the group was still discussing it. But Abu Zuhri said its terms echoed Israel's position and do not contain commitments to end the war, withdraw Israeli troops or admit aid as Hamas has demanded. Deep differences between Hamas and Israel have stymied previous attempts to restore a ceasefire that broke down in March after only two months. Israel has insisted that Hamas disarm completely and be dismantled as a military and governing force and that all 58 hostages still held in Gaza must be returned before it will agree to end the war. Hamas has rejected the demand to give up its weapons and says Israel must pull its troops out of Gaza and commit to ending the war. AID EFFORT EXPANDS The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, a private group backed by the United States and endorsed by Israel, expanded its aid distribution to a third site on Thursday. Heavily criticised by the United Nations and other aid groups as inadequate and flawed, the group's operation began this week in Gaza, where the U.N. has said 2 million people are at risk of famine after Israel's 11-week blockade on aid entering the enclave. The aid launch was marred by tumultuous scenes on Tuesday when thousands of Palestinians rushed distribution points and forced private security contractors to retreat. The chaotic start to the operation has raised international pressure on Israel to get more food in and halt the fighting in Gaza. GHF has so far supplied about 1.8 million meals and plans to open more sites in the coming weeks. Witkoff told reporters on Wednesday that Washington was close to "sending out a new term sheet" about a ceasefire to the two sides in the conflict that has raged since October 2023. "I have some very good feelings about getting to a long-term resolution, temporary ceasefire and a long-term resolution, a peaceful resolution, of that conflict," Witkoff said then. Israel has come under increasing international pressure, with many European countries that have normally been reluctant to criticise it openly demanding an end to the war and a major relief effort. Israel launched its campaign in Gaza in response to the devastating Hamas attack in southern Israel on October 7, 2023, that killed some 1,200 people and saw 251 taken hostage into Gaza, according to Israeli tallies. The campaign has killed more than 54,000 Palestinians, Gaza health officials say, and left the enclave in ruins. © Thomson Reuters 2025.
