Hamas said on Thursday that it does not accept the outline for US envoy Steve Witkoff’s ceasefire and hostage deal proposal at face value, and has demanded certain changes, according to sources familiar with the details.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told families of hostages held in Gaza that Israel has accepted the new ceasefire proposal, while an Israeli official noted that Hamas is likely to reject it.
A source close to Hamas told Walla that the group claimed the new proposal is more biased in favor of Israel than previous proposals and that Witkoff accepted most of the demands presented by Ron Dermer in a meeting with him on Tuesday.
Additionally, the source noted that the new proposal does not provide a clear American guarantee that the temporary ceasefire will lead to a permanent one. Furthermore, the proposal does not specify that if negotiations extend beyond 60 days, the ceasefire will also continue, and Israel will not be able to unilaterally violate it as it did in March, Walla quoted.
According to a senior Israeli official, “Contrary to reports, the Witkoff agreement proposed in recent days did not determine the new deployment line of the IDF, nor the manner in which aid would be distributed within the framework of a ceasefire.”
“The Hamas Movement’s leadership has received the new Witkoff proposal from the mediators and is reviewing it responsibly to serve the interests of our people, provide them relief, and achieve a permanent ceasefire in the Gaza Strip,” Hamas said in a statement.
Hamas received proposal and ‘studying it’
Earlier, the terrorist organization said it had received Witkoff’s new proposal for a ceasefire in Gaza from mediators.
The new proposal would include the release of 10 living hostages along with 18 deceased. The hostage release would take place in two rounds, a source told The Jerusalem Post.
Additionally, both sides would agree to a 60-day ceasefire that can be extended after the deadline if Hamas and Israel agree.
Lastly, the IDF would withdraw from areas in Gaza, and the United Nations would take over the distribution of humanitarian aid.
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