Jerusalem/Doha/Gaza, Aug 20: Israel said on Tuesday it would only agree to a Gaza ceasefire deal if all remaining hostages were freed, after Hamas accepted a new proposal from regional mediators aimed at ending nearly two years of war.
A senior Israeli official told AFP the government’s position had not changed, insisting that “the release of all hostages is required in any deal.” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said last week Israel would accept only an agreement where all captives are freed at once “and according to our conditions for ending the war.”
The remarks came a day after Hamas signalled its readiness for a truce, telling mediators in Qatar and Egypt it had accepted the latest plan, which officials described as nearly identical to one Israel had previously endorsed. Qatari foreign ministry spokesman Majed al-Ansari called Hamas’s response “very positive” but cautioned that no breakthrough had yet been achieved.
According to Egyptian media, the proposal envisions a 60-day pause in fighting, a partial hostage release, the freeing of Palestinian prisoners, and provisions for the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza.
Of the 251 hostages taken during Hamas’s Oct. 2023 assault on Israel, 49 remain in Gaza, including 27 the Israeli military says are dead. Two previous short-lived truces brokered by mediators led to hostage-for-prisoner exchanges but failed to produce a lasting ceasefire.
Hamas official Mahmoud Mardawi said his group had “opened the door wide” to an agreement, but questioned whether Netanyahu would block it “as he has done in the past.” Far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir warned a deal would be a “tragedy” if Israel made concessions to Hamas.
Netanyahu, under mounting domestic and international pressure, faces growing protests at home. Tens of thousands rallied in Tel Aviv on Sunday demanding an end to the war and the release of hostages still in Gaza.
Meanwhile, fighting has intensified in Gaza City, where Israel’s security cabinet recently approved plans to seize control. Gaza’s civil defence agency said 31 people were killed on Tuesday in the Zeitoun and Sabra districts, describing the situation as “very dangerous and unbearable.” Residents reported tank shelling, drone fire and heavy airstrikes around schools and a UN-run clinic sheltering displaced families.
The Israeli military said its operations were aimed at dismantling Hamas’s military capabilities and that it was taking “feasible precautions to mitigate civilian harm.”
Since the war began, 1,219 people in Israel have been killed, mostly civilians, according to official figures. At least 62,064 Palestinians, also mostly civilians, have been killed in Israel’s offensive, according to Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry, whose figures the United Nations deems reliable.
