Hamas says it agrees to the Qatar-Egypt ceasefire plan and is calling for pressure on Israel to make peace [Getty]
Hamas has accused Israel of blocking a ceasefire proposal put forward by the countries trying to mediate an end to the Gaza war.
The Palestinian group has agreed to a framework drawn up by Qatar and Egypt to return to the ceasefire, and is calling for international pressure on Israel to do the same, two officials from the movement told AFP on Wednesday.
Instead, Israel has put forward a rival proposal, which has been dismissed by Hamas.
“Hamas has decided not to follow up on the latest Israeli proposal presented through the mediators” said one of the officials, speaking on condition of anonymity.
They accused Israel of “blocking a proposal from Egypt and Qatar and trying to derail any agreement”.
A second official called on “the mediators and the international community to force [Israel] to commit to the mediators’ proposal”.
Israel shattered two months of relative calm in March when it refused to stick to the terms of the January ceasefire and resumed its assault on Gaza, claiming that the Israeli captives being held by Hamas would only be released through military action.Â
Egypt, Qatar and the United States are attempting to broker a new ceasefire and secure the release of the remaining Israeli prisoners.
A senior Hamas official said on Saturday that the group had approved a new ceasefire proposal, while Netanyahu’s office said Israel had submitted a counteroffer. The details remain undisclosed.
According to one of the Hamas officials, the Egyptian-Qatari proposal includes a 50-day ceasefire during which Hamas would release five Israeli soldiers, including one who holds US citizenship, in exchange for the release of 250 Palestinians imprisoned by Israel, including 150 serving life sentences.
Israel would also release 2,000 Palestinians captured by the Israeli army in the Gaza Strip since 7 October, 2023, the date of Hamas’s deadly attack that triggered the war.
The same source said the proposal accepted by Hamas on Saturday also included the withdrawal of the Israeli army from areas of Gaza where it redeployed since 18 March, and the influx of humanitarian aid.
The first phase of the truce, which began on 19 January, led to the return of 33 Israeli hostages, eight of whom were dead, in exchange for the release of approximately 1,800 Palestinian detainees.
Of the 251 prisoners captured during the 7 October attack, 58 remain in Gaza, 34 of whom are dead, according to the Israeli army.
(AFP)
