Hamas accepts Gaza ceasefire proposal with American assurances

Hamas accepted the framework of a proposed new 60-day cease-fire and hostage-release deal in Gaza that, if concluded, would immediately trigger U.S.-backed negotiations between the terrorist group and Israel, aimed at a permanent end to the war, Arab officials involved in the talks said.

The new proposal was put together by US special envoy Steve Witkoff, along with mediators from Egypt and Qatar. The Palestinian terror group added in a statement that it was “seriously ready to enter immediately into a round of negotiations”.

US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that Israel had accepted the “necessary conditions” for a 60-day ceasefire, during which the parties would work to end the war.

He also urged Hamas to accept what he described as “the final proposal”, warning the group that “it will not get better – it will only get worse”. The plan is believed to include the staggered release of 10 living Israeli hostages by Hamas and the bodies of 18 other hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails. Fifty hostages are still being held in Gaza, at least 20 of whom are believed to be alive.

The proposal also reportedly says that sufficient quantities of humanitarian aid would enter Gaza immediately with the involvement of the UN and the International Committee of the Red Cross.

The US proposal is believed to include phased Israeli pull-outs from parts of northern and southern Gaza. But a Palestinian official said Hamas was insisting that troops returned to the positions they held before the last ceasefire collapsed in March, when Israel resumed its offensive against the group.

The Palestinian official said Hamas also wanted a US guarantee that Israeli air and ground operations would not resume if negotiations on a permanent ceasefire failed. The proposal is believed to say that negotiations on ending the war would begin on day one.

However, Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ruled out ending the war until all of the hostages are released and Hamas’s military and governing capabilities are destroyed.

There are still several critical and important steps that need to be taken before a ceasefire can come into effect, but it looks like we are inching towards that at the moment.