AgenPress – Israel has given Hamas a week to agree on a ceasefire deal, otherwise it will begin the invasion of Rafah, Egyptian officials told al Wall Street Journal.
Egyptian officials have said Hamas is seeking a long-term truce and guarantees from the United States that the ceasefire will be respected by Israel.
Hamas has expressed concern that the latest proposal is still too vague and gives Israel room to resume fighting.
Yahya Sinwar, the head of Hamas in Gaza, has yet to make his views known, further complicating the situation.
The proposal includes an initial period of up to 40 days of cessation of violence, during which Hamas would release up to 33 hostages, with the possible negotiation of a long-term ceasefire.
There would then be a ceasefire of at least six weeks, during which Hamas and Israel would agree on a broader release of hostages and an extended pause in fighting that could last up to a year.
A Hamas leader accused Netanyahu of multiplying his statements to the media in order to sabotage efforts to secure a truce. Hamas political bureau member Hossam Badran told AFP that his negotiators were currently discussing the ceasefire proposal submitted at the end of April internally and with other Palestinian armed groups, before returning to Cairo. , where indirect negotiations with Israel will take place. The mediators – Egypt, Qatar, the United States – are still waiting in Cairo for Hamas’ response to this offer of truce.
Egypt invited senior Hamas officials to Cairo to continue negotiations, and Hamas confirmed they would be present. Neither the United States nor Israel commented on the report.
Netanyahu insisted that Israel will enter Rafah regardless of whether a deal is reached or not.
Hamas was concerned that Netanyahu was trying to get them to reject the proposal, to provide justification for invading Rafah, and then blame Hamas for the failure of the negotiations.
According to Egyptian officials, Hamas should respond to the proposal with a counterproposal rather than an outright rejection.
The United States has told Hamas that it should accept the deal as it is and not push for further concessions.
