A source in Hamas said Monday the Islamist group is studying a Gaza ceasefire deal that would see a six-week truce and Israeli women and child hostages freed in exchange for up to 900 Palestinian prisoners.
The first phase of the proposal would also see the return of displaced Palestinian civilians to the north of the Gaza Strip and 400 to 500 trucks of food aid a day delivered to its starving people, according to the source close to the negotiations, asking for anonymity.
The news comes after the White House said negotiators had presented the Palestinian militant group with a proposal after talks in Cairo over the weekend.
The first part of the deal for the 42 women, children and elderly hostages would include “800 to 900 Palestinian prisoners”, 100 of whom are serving life or long sentences in Israeli jails, according to the Hamas source.
The second stage includes the release of all Israeli prisoners, including soldiers and officers, in exchange for a number of Palestinian prisoners to be agreed upon in the coming days, the source added.
“This phase includes lifting the Israeli military checkpoints located on the Al-Rashid coastal road in the west of the Gaza Strip and the Salah al-Din road in the east,” he said.
The proposal would also keep Israeli forces at a distance of “not less than 500 metres (yards) from the two roads without interference or any inspections of the displaced”, and maintain drones to monitor the passage of armed men on the two roads.
A third part of the deal would involve a permanent ceasefire and a complete Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, the Hamas source said.
The ceasefire talks in the Egyptian capital, which involved CIA chief William Burns, Israel, Hamas and Qatar, were described as “serious” by the White House Monday.
“Now it’s going to be up to Hamas to come through,” the White House said.
Earlier, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu talked tough, insisting that a date has been set for a ground offensive in Rafah, which Israel says is one of the last Hamas strongholds in Gaza.
“Today I received a detailed report on the talks in Cairo,” Netanyahu said.
“We are working all the time to achieve our goals, primarily the release of all our hostages and achieving a complete victory over Hamas.”
That “requires entry into Rafah and the elimination of the terrorist battalions there”, he added.
“It will happen — there is a date,” he said in a video statement.
The Gaza war was sparked by the October 7 attack against Israel by Hamas fighters that resulted in the deaths of 1,170 people, mostly civilians, according to Israeli figures.
Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed at least 33,207 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory.
Of the around 250 Israeli and foreign hostages abducted by Hamas on October 7, 129 remain in Gaza, of whom the military says 34 are dead.
