Hamas yesterday said it was reviewing a new Israeli proposal for a ceasefire in Gaza, as Egypt intensified efforts to broker a deal to end the months-long war and stave off a possible Israeli ground offensive into the southern Gaza city of Rafah.
Senior Hamas official Khalil al-Hayya said the Palestinian militant group was evaluating Israel’s proposal, and “upon completion of its study, it will submit its response.”
He gave no details of Israel’s offer, but said it was in response to a proposal from Hamas two weeks ago. Negotiations earlier this month centered on a six-week ceasefire proposal and the release of 40 civilian and sick hostages in exchange for freeing hundreds of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.
Photo: AFP
Hamas’ statement came hours after a high-level Egyptian delegation wrapped up a visit to Israel where it discussed a “new vision” for a prolonged ceasefire in Gaza, an Egyptian official said, speaking on condition of anonymity to freely discuss the developments.
It was not immediately clear whether Israel’s latest response to Hamas on a ceasefire was directly related to Friday’s visit to Tel Aviv by Egyptian mediators.
The discussions between Egyptian and Israeli officials focused on the first stage of a multi-phase plan that would include a limited exchange of hostages held by Hamas for Palestinian prisoners, and the return of a significant number of displaced Palestinians to their homes in northern Gaza “with minimum restrictions,” the Egyptian official said.
The mediators are working on a compromise that would answer most of both parties’ main demands, which could pave the way to continued negotiations with the goal of a larger deal to end the war, the official said.
As the war drags on and casualties mount, there has been growing international pressure for Hamas and Israel to reach an agreement on a ceasefire and avert a possible Israeli attack on Rafah, where more than half of Gaza’s 2.3 million people have sought refuge after fleeing fighting elsewhere in the territory.
The Israeli military has massed dozens of tanks and armored vehicles in southern Israel close to Rafah and hit targets in the city in near-daily airstrikes.
Early yesterday, an Israeli airstrike hit a house in Rafah’s Tel Sultan neighborhood, killing six people, including four children, officials at a local hospital said.
Meanwhile, ballistic missiles fired by Yemen’s Houthi rebels caused “minor damage” to a Panama-flagged oil tanker traveling through the Red Sea on Friday, authorities said.
The attack follows an uptick in assaults launched by the Houthis in recent days after a relative lull in their months-long campaign over Israel’s war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
The rebels fired three missiles in the attack, one of which damaged the Panama-flagged, Seychelles-registered Andromeda Star, the US military’s Central Command said.
The private security firm Ambrey described the tanker as being “engaged in Russia-linked trade.” The vessel was traveling from Primorsk, Russia, to Vadinar, India, Ambrey said.
Houthi military spokesman Brigadeer General Yahya Saree claimed the attack early yesterday in a prerecorded statement aired by the rebels.
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