Israel submitted a new series of maps to mediators in Doha on Monday that envision a further pullback of its forces within Gaza during the 60-day truce under discussion, an Arab diplomat told The Times of Israel.
However, the adjustments are unlikely to be significant enough to allow for a breakthrough, the Arab diplomat said, adding that Hamas is still reviewing the updated Israeli proposal and will likely need a day or two before responding.
This was the second time that Israel revised the maps of its proposed partial withdrawal from the Gaza Strip in two weeks.
Last week, it agreed to do so under US pressure, but the proposal was rejected by Hamas as insufficient, as it envisioned that Israel would still maintain control of over a third of the Strip, including a three-kilometer buffer zone in Rafah where Israel wants to create a controversial “humanitarian city.”
There, Gaza’s entire population will be herded, vetted upon entry and prevented from leaving, as Jerusalem encourages their migration to countries outside the Strip.
Confirming reporting on the Axios news site, the Arab diplomat said Monday that the new version of the Israeli maps envision a reduction of the Rafah buffer zone to two kilometers from three.
Palestinians receive meals from volunteers in Deir al-Balah, in central Gaza Strip, on July 14, 2025. (Ali Hassan/Flash90)
The deal being negotiated would secure the release of 10 living hostages and the bodies of 18 slain captives in five batches throughout the two-month truce in exchange for a still-to-be-agreed-upon number of Palestinian security prisoners. During the ceasefire, the sides will hold negotiations on a permanent ceasefire, which Israel says it will only agree to if Hamas agrees to disarm and step down from power. Hamas has said it is willing to give up governing control of Gaza but that it will not give up its weapons or agree to send its remaining leaders into exile.
Meanwhile, Hamas accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of not wanting to reach a deal to end the war in Gaza as negotiations in Qatar for a hostage release and ceasefire deal entered their second week.
“Netanyahu is skilled at thwarting one round of negotiations after another, and is unwilling to reach any agreement,” Hamas said in a statement.
Netanyahu has said Hamas is the party refusing to move forward with a US-backed proposal for a deal, and on Sunday accused Israeli media of “echoing Hamas propaganda” in response to reports claiming that he and his government have been dragging out the war in order to remain in power.
Weighing in on the negotiations from the White House, US President Donald Trump said “we’re doing pretty well on Gaza” and that “we could have something fairly soon to talk about.”
Trump however has forecast several times in recent weeks that a deal could soon be reached, with his predictions yet to pan out.
Demonstrators protest near the Prime Minister’s Residence in Jerusalem on July 12, 2025, calling for a hostage deal and end to the war in Gaza. Their sign reads ‘Patience kills.’ (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
After US and Israeli officials expressed optimism last week about the chances for an imminent agreement, negotiations were stuck from Wednesday to Monday over the scope of Israel’s military withdrawal from Gaza, the Arab diplomat and another source involved in mediation efforts told The Times of Israel on Sunday.
The two sources claimed Netanyahu was preventing a breakthrough from being reached before the Knesset recess, which runs from July 27 until October 19, as it is more difficult to dissolve parliament during that period. The far-right flank of his coalition is strongly opposed to ending the war with Hamas still in charge of Gaza and has threatened to withdraw over the issue, leaving Netanyahu vulnerable to losing power.
Netanyahu has denied thwarting a hostage deal, arguing that Hamas — not Israel — was the one that did not accept the US proposal for an agreement in the spring. The US has also maintained that Hamas has been the obstacle to a deal to date.
While continuing to reject the Israeli military redeployment proposal, Hamas has agreed to accept a one-kilometer (0.6-mile) buffer zone around much of the Strip’s perimeter. However, Israel is pushing for the buffer zone to extend two kilometers (1.2 miles) into Gaza, which the Arab mediators think is unreasonable, the two sources said.
Aiming to overcome the breakthrough, US special envoy to the Mideast met with Qatari officials on the sidelines of a soccer match in New Jersey on Sunday, though, there were no reports of progress following that meeting.
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