Israel sends negotiators to Qatar for talks on 60-day ceasefire, hostage exchange
'There are 20 hostages that are alive, 30 dead. I am determined, we are determined, to bring them all back. And we will also be determined to ensure that Gaza will no longer pose a threat to Israel,' Netanyahu said before departing, emphasizing the goal of eliminating Hamas' military and governing power.
A person familiar with the negotiations shared with the Associated Press a copy of the latest ceasefire proposal submitted by mediators to Hamas, and its veracity was confirmed by two other people familiar with the document. All three spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the sensitive talks with the media.
The document outlines plans for a 60-day ceasefire during which Hamas would hand over 10 living and 18 dead hostages, Israeli forces would withdraw to a buffer zone along Gaza's borders with Israel and Egypt, and significant amounts of aid would be brought in. The document says the aid would be distributed by United Nations agencies and the Palestinian Red Crescent. It does not specify what would happen to the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, the American organization that has distributed food aid since May. Israel wants it to replace the system co-ordinated by the UN.
As in previous ceasefire agreements, Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli facilities would be released in exchange for the hostages, but the number is not yet agreed upon.
The proposal stops short of guaranteeing a permanent end to the war – a condition demanded by Hamas – but says negotiations for a permanent ceasefire would take place during the 60 days. During that time, 'President [Donald] Trump guarantees Israel's adherence' to halting military operations, the document says, adding that Trump 'will personally announce the ceasefire agreement.'
The personal guarantee by Trump appeared to be an attempt to reassure Hamas that Israel would not unilaterally resume fighting as it did in March during a previous ceasefire, when talks to extend it appeared to stall.
Trump said last week that Israel had agreed on terms for a 60-day ceasefire, but it was unclear if the terms were those in the document reviewed by the AP. Hamas has requested some changes but has not specified them.
Separately, an Israeli official said the security Cabinet late Saturday approved sending aid into northern Gaza, where civilians suffer from acute food shortages. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the decision with the media, declined to give more details.
Northern Gaza has seen just a trickle of aid enter since Israel ended the latest ceasefire in March. The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation's closest distribution site is near the Netzarim corridor south of Gaza City that separates the territory's north and south.
Israeli strikes hit two houses in Gaza City, killing 20 Palestinians and wounding 25 others, according to Mohammed Abu Selmia, director of Shifa Hospital, which serves the area.
Israel's military said it struck several Hamas fighters in two locations in the area of Gaza City.
In southern Gaza, Israeli strikes killed 18 Palestinians in Muwasi on the Mediterranean coast, where thousands of displaced people live in tents, said officials at Nasser Hospital in nearby Khan Younis. It said two families were among the dead.
'My brother, his wife, his four children, my cousin's son and his daughter. ... Eight people are gone,' said Saqer Abu Al-Kheir as people gathered on the sand for prayers and burials.
Israel's military had no immediate comment on those strikes but said it struck 130 targets across Gaza in the past 24 hours. It claimed it targeted Hamas command and control structures, storage facilities, weapons and launchers, and that they killed a number of militants in northern Gaza.
'Lucrative' business deals help sustain Israel's campaign in Gaza, UN report says
Ahead of the indirect talks with Hamas in Qatar, Netanyahu's office asserted that the militant group was seeking 'unacceptable' changes to the ceasefire proposal. Hamas gave a 'positive' response late Friday to the latest proposal.
The militant group has sought guarantees that the initial truce would lead to a total end to the war and withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza. Previous negotiations have stalled over Hamas demands of guarantees that further negotiations would lead to the war's end, while Netanyahu has insisted Israel would resume fighting to ensure the group's destruction.
The war began when Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 others hostage. Most have been released in earlier ceasefires. Israel responded with an offensive that has killed over 57,000 Palestinians, more than half of them women and children, according to Gaza's Health Ministry.
The ministry, which is under Gaza's Hamas government, does not differentiate between civilians and combatants. The U.N. and other international organizations see its figures as the most reliable statistics on war casualties.
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