As the war between Israel and Hamas continues, Israel has warned Egypt that this is the “last chance” for a truce deal in Gaza, as Hamas reveals it has “no major problems” reaching an agreement with the country.
A Hamas delegation will arrive in Egypt today, where it will respond to Israel’s latest proposal for a long-awaited deal to release hostages in the Gaza Strip after nearly seven months of bloody conflict.
But Israel has chillingly warned that if a deal is not reached imminently, Tel Aviv is about to launch its long-planned ground attack on Rafah.
According to the Ynet news site, Israeli authorities made the statement after discussions between top Israeli and Egyptian officials over the hostage deal with Hamas ended on Friday.
Egypt, Qatar and the United States have been trying to mediate a deal between Israel and Hamas for months, as the death toll in Gaza rises to worrying levels and desperate calls for a deal intensify.
A Hamas delegation will arrive in Egypt today, where it will respond to Israel’s latest proposal for a long-awaited deal to release hostages in the Gaza Strip after almost seven months of bloody conflict (Gaza file photo, April 27) .
Mourners stand near the bodies of an adult and a child killed in an overnight Israeli bombing, outside a hospital morgue in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, April 27, as conflict between Israel and the militant group Hamas.
Relatives of two Palestinians who were killed in Israeli army attacks in Wadi Gaza cry after their families brought their bodies to Al Aqsa Martyrs Hospital for burial in Deir al-Balah, Gaza, April 28.
But despite immense global pressure to reach a ceasefire, an agreement has yet to be reached.
Hamas said yesterday that it had “no major problem” with the content of Israel’s latest truce offer.
“The atmosphere is positive unless there are new Israeli obstacles,” a senior Hamas official told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity.
In Israel, protesters are demanding that the government guarantee the freedom of their hostages who were captured by Hamas militants during the October 7 massacre that sparked the current conflict.
Israel says some 129 hostages remain detained in Gaza, including 34 who the military says are dead.
In a barely week-long ceasefire in November, 80 Israeli hostages were exchanged for 240 Palestinians who had been hiding in Israeli prisons.
Hamas has previously insisted on a permanent ceasefire and an end to the war, a condition Israel has rejected.
But for the first time since October 7, Israeli leaders have suggested they are open to discussing ending the violent war.
A Palestinian boy retrieves items from the rubble of a house destroyed by overnight Israeli bombing in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, April 27.
Palestinians walk past the ruins of houses and buildings destroyed during Israel’s military offensive (file photo)
Since the war began almost seven months ago, people around the world have been calling for a ceasefire.
The Axios news site, citing two Israeli officials, reported that Israel’s latest proposal includes a willingness to discuss “restoring sustainable calm” in Gaza, after the release of its hostages.
A Hamas source close to the negotiations told AFP that the militant group “is open to positively discussing the new proposal” and is “interested in reaching an agreement that guarantees a permanent ceasefire, the free return of displaced people, a acceptable agreement for (prisoners) exchange and ensure the end of the siege on Gaza.
But although the talks were “very good, focused, held in good humor and progressed in all parameters,” according to an Israeli official, Egypt seemed willing to pressure Hamas to reach an agreement, stating that “deep down, there are intentions very serious on Israel’s part to advance in Rafah.’
“This is the last chance before entering Rafah,” the official said.
‘The number of days of the ceasefire will be linked to the number of hostages who will be released. “If Hamas wants a humanitarian deal, Israel will not be the obstacle,” an Israeli official told Axios ahead of talks with Egypt.
They also mentioned that Israel was willing to make more concessions, including the return of residents to northern Gaza.
The talks come after at least 22 people died in Rafah overnight, according to doctors and the Civil Defense agency.
Locals and rescuers reported a series of airstrikes in Rafah, where most of Gaza’s 2.4 million residents have sought refuge near the border with Egypt.
Israel has vowed to attack Hamas battalions in the southern Gaza city, but the prospect has set off alarm bells around the world as many of the civilians in war-torn Gaza have fled there.
Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz said Saturday, however, that Israel would be willing to suspend a ground offensive in Rafah if Hamas accepts the deal to release the hostages.
The streets of the Gaza Strip are unrecognizable after almost seven months of Israeli attacks
A house damaged in an Israeli attack lies in ruins, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, on April 29.
A mourner reacts during the funeral of Palestinians killed in Israeli attacks
“If there is an agreement, we will suspend the operation,” Katz told Israel’s Channel 12.
World leaders and humanitarian groups have also warned that an imminent invasion of Rafah would cause huge civilian casualties.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas called on the United States to prevent Israel from invading Rafah, which he said would be “the biggest disaster in the history of the Palestinian people.”
The United States – Israel’s main ally and weapons supplier – was the only nation capable of stopping Israel from “committing this crime,” Abbas said at a global economic summit in Saudi Arabia.
Senior Hamas leader Khalil al-Hayya will brief Egyptian and Qatari mediators in Cairo on Monday about the group’s response to the truce proposal.
Meanwhile, US President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday discussed the status of negotiations for the deal that would ensure the long-awaited return of the Israeli hostages.
During the call, Biden also ‘reiterated his clear position’ on the possible invasion of Rafah, and White House national security spokesman John Kirby said Israel had agreed to listen to US concerns and thoughts before launching a invasion.
The Hamas attack on October 7 killed about 1,170 people in Israel, mostly civilians, according to official Israeli figures.
Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed more than 34,400 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the Hamas-occupied territory’s Health Ministry.
