The proposal, received by Hamas on Monday, outlines an initial framework for a 45-day truce in the Palestinian enclave during which the two sides would aim to negotiate a permanent ceasefire, according to the official.
The Israeli proposal also calls for the disarmament of Gaza, previously a red line for Hamas. It does not include a guarantee of a permanent end to the war, which Hamas has demanded as part of a comprehensive agreement.
The Hamas official said the group will not agree to any Israeli ceasefire proposal that calls for its disarmament or sees Israeli forces return to Gaza after an initial withdrawal, making it unlikely that the group will accept it.
The offer marks Israel’s first proposal to bring back hostages from Gaza since it resumed the war in March. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is under intense pressure from hostage families and a growing number of military reservists to reach a deal.
Under the proposal, the hostages would be released in stages, starting with Israeli American Edan Alexander on the first day of the truce as a “special gesture” to the United States, the Hamas official said.
A further nine Israeli hostages would be released in two stages in exchange for 120 Palestinian prisoners serving life sentences and more than 1,100 detainees held without charge since October 7, 2023, the official added.
Israel’s proposal also demands that Hamas provide information about the remaining living Israeli hostages held by the group, “in exchange for information about the Palestinian detainees,” and the release of the bodies of 16 deceased Israeli hostages in exchange for the remains of 160 deceased Palestinians held by Israel.
The “temporary ceasefire lasting 45 days” would also include the cessation of military operations and the entry of aid into Gaza as well as “an agreed mechanism to ensure that aid reaches only civilians,” the Hamas official said.
The proposal would also include the entry of equipment necessary for sheltering Palestinians displaced in Gaza.
A Hamas delegation met with Egyptian and Qatari mediators in Cairo over the weekend. Israel has not publicly acknowledged whether it sent a team to the negotiations.
Since early March, Israel has cut Gaza off from the supply of humanitarian aid including food, with aid agencies warning that the situation for the strip’s 2 million civilians has deteriorated dangerously, only worsened by intensive Israeli military operations.
Israel’s move to block aid came ahead of its renewed military offensive in the enclave, in what it said was a bid to pressure Hamas into releasing more hostages and impose new conditions on a ceasefire that was in effect at the time. More than 1,500 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since mid-March, according to the Ministry of Health in the enclave.
Under the new ceasefire proposal, the Israeli military would withdraw for seven days from parts of Gaza including the southern city of Rafah, some areas of the north and the east of Gaza City, according to the Hamas official.
“Negotiations for a permanent ceasefire should be completed within 45 days,” after which the remaining Israeli hostages held by Hamas, both living and deceased, would be released to Israel, the official said.
“If an agreement is reached on the temporary ceasefire, it can be extended under conditions and for a duration agreed upon by the two parties… if the period ends without an agreement, it will be extended in exchange for new prisoners.”
‘Steps are underway’ to reach a deal
On Sunday, Netanyahu’s office said that “steps are underway” to reach a new hostage-ceasefire deal in Gaza, while speaking to the family of hostage Eitan Mor.
One of the groups representing hostages’ families, the Tikva Forum, confirmed the conversation and said that Netanyahu had updated the Mor family “on the progress of the negotiations for the release of 10 abductees alive.”
Israeli media have also reported that the negotiations are for the release of 10 hostages, but the prime minister’s office has not confirmed the number.
Also on Sunday, senior Hamas official Mahmoud Mardawi said on Telegram that while Hamas had a positive attitude to any proposal “based on halting the aggression and the withdrawal of occupation forces… we will not accept a shift toward a fragmented process limited to a food-for-prisoners (hostages) deal.”
