‘Last chance before entering Rafah’: Israel sends ceasefire offer, Hamas says as it studies response
A chair is left in front of posters with photos of hostages who were abducted during the deadly October 7 attack on Israel by the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza between Israel and Hamas, in Tel Aviv, Israel Was. (Image: Reuters)
Israel said it had received signals from the Egyptian delegation that they were prepared to put pressure on Hamas to agree to a ceasefire deal.
According to the news agency, Hamas said on Saturday that it had received Israel’s official response to its latest ceasefire proposal and would study it before giving its own response. reuters citing Khalil al-Haya, the group’s deputy Gaza chief.
“Hamas has received the Zionist occupation’s official response to the resolution it presented to Egyptian and Qatari mediators on April 13,” Khalil al-Haya said in a statement from Qatar.
The Hamas statement came after Israel said it was offering a “last chance” for a ceasefire deal before launching its offensive against Hamas in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, which now houses more than a million internally displaced people. Following talks between Israeli officials and a top-level Egyptian delegation.
“This is the last chance before we go to Rafah,” the news agency quoted the official as saying. Ynet,
Six months into the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, talks remain at an impasse as Hamas sticks to its demand that any agreement should try to end the war.
Egypt, Qatar and the United States have been trying unsuccessfully to seal a new ceasefire deal in Gaza since fighting stopped for a week in November, in exchange for 80 Israeli hostages in exchange for 240 Palestinians held in Israeli prisons. -The change was made.
The war began on October 7 with an unprecedented Hamas attack, resulting in the deaths of approximately 1,170 people in Israel, mostly civilians. AFP Israeli official figures tally.
Israel’s retaliatory strikes have killed at least 34,356 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry.
Israel estimates there are 129 hostages still held by Hamas in Gaza, 34 of whom have been killed according to the military.
According to one report, Israeli officials said they had “very good, focused” talks with their Egyptian counterparts and that the discussions “were in good spirit and led to progress in all parameters”. israel time,
The report, quoting Israeli officials, also said that the Egyptian delegation indicated they were willing to put pressure on Hamas to reach an agreement.
Another officer told reuters Israel had no new offers to make, although it was willing to consider a limited ceasefire in which Hamas would release 33 hostages instead of the 40 previously discussed.
The US, along with 17 other countries, appealed to Hamas to release all its hostages and end the crisis.
In response to the joint statement, Hamas criticized those who issued the statement for not calling for a permanent ceasefire and withdrawal of troops, saying, “(We) support any idea or proposal that takes into account the needs and rights of our people.” Israeli forces from Gaza have also vowed not to bow to international pressure.
Israeli officials told news outlets there that “Israel has very serious intentions to advance into Rafah”.
