Israeli negotiators are set to resume talks this week on a deal for the release of Israeli hostages and a ceasefire in the Gaza war, according to The Times of Israel. An unidentified official said officials are expected to attend talks to work on details.
During a meeting on Monday with families of five female Israeli hostages held by Hamas, Israeli defence minister Yoav Gallant is reported by an Israeli television station to have said: “This is the closest [to a deal] we have ever been”.
According to Channel 12, Mr Gallant said there “is absolute agreement” among the Israeli army, domestic [Shin Bet] and external security [Mossad] that “there is no security obstacle that is insurmountable”.
When asked by the families of Israeli hostages if Binyamin Netanyahu was intervening in the negotiations, Mr Gallant urged them to meet the prime minister before he departs for the US next week, saying: “He is the one who decides”.
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Hamas has said the talks will continue despite Israel’s attack on Gaza on Saturday which killed 91 Palestinians, mainly women and children. Hamas’s military commander Muhammad Deif was the target of the attack, but his death has not been confirmed.
After three days of discussions, Egypt suspended talks on Friday due to Israeli “internal discord”, Egyptian security sources said.
Israel’s delegation, which was headed by Shin Bet director Ronen Bar, could present no clear policy on the three-phase ceasefire plan accepted by Hamas and US president Joe Biden. Its negotiators would present conditions to mediators and return with cancellations and new conditions “that risked sinking the negotiations”, Reuters reported.
Mr Netanyahu has demanded Israeli retention of the Gaza-Egypt border despite Cairo’s objection. The prime minister also wants Israel to have the right to resume its military offensive after the ceasefire and return of hostages. These demands contradict the terms of the plan.
The first phase of the plan calls for a six-week ceasefire, release of Israeli women, men aged over 50 and ailing hostages. In exchange hundreds of Palestinian prisoners would be freed. Israel would withdraw from urban areas, Palestinians would return to their home locations in Gaza, and humanitarian aid would flow into the strip.
During the second phase, talks would take place on an end to the war, all surviving hostages would be released, and Israel’s army would withdraw from Gaza.
During the third phase, the bodies of dead hostages would be returned, and the international community would begin the reconstruction of Gaza.
Mr Netanyahu has been accused of mishandling the conduct of the talks by Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid, Hamas, hostage families, and liberal Israeli media. The Hostage and Missing Families Forum accused Mr Netanyahu of “irresponsible behaviour that is likely to lead to missing an opportunity that may never come back”.
Israel has confirmed the deaths of 43 hostages.
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