(A7) Hamas on Sunday forwarded to Israel, through the Egyptian and Qatari mediators, a proposal for the release of hostages which includes, in the implementation of the first phase of the agreement, an Israeli withdrawal from areas in the Gaza Strip that Israel has taken over, Walla! reported on Monday.
A senior Israeli official who was privy to the details said that Israel refused the offer, as the demand for an Israeli withdrawal was only one of several demands that, from Israel’s point of view, are unacceptable.
Alongside this, Hamas is demanding that in the final stage of the agreement, Israel declare a permanent ceasefire and an end to the war.
The proposal, according to the report, was discussed in the War Cabinet and rejected.
As part of the proposed agreement, 40 hostages will be released, including women, men over the age of 60 and hostages who are in serious medical condition.
The Israeli official added, “The Hamas proposal that arrived yesterday was not in the right direction and the mediators were sent to produce a more normal proposal.”
“They went to work and we’ll see what comes out of it. We’re in the early stages. The negotiations are no longer stuck, but they’re still not moving forward either.”
