Israel is negotiating a deal with Hamas that could result in the release of 40 hostages in exchange for a six-week cease-fire.
Although Israel is “still far from a deal,” one Israeli official told Axios, “some progress” was made in the negotiations this week, a U.S. official said. The agreement would also require Israel to release several hundred Palestinian prisoners, some of whom were convicted of murdering Israelis, in exchange for 40 medically vulnerable or female Israeli civilians.
“We are working to get another framework for the release of our hostages, as well as the completion of the elimination of the Hamas battalions in Rafah,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Saturday. “Only a combination of military pressure and tough negotiations will lead to the release of our hostages, the elimination of Hamas and the achievement of all the war’s objectives.”
Delegations from the U.S., Israel, Egypt, and Qatar met this weekend to discuss the possible deal, amid Israeli plans to begin a ground offensive in Rafah. The U.S. has said it will not support such an operation unless Israel ensures the protection of the more than one million Gazans currently in the city.
“There is no change in our view that the operation in Rafah will be a disaster unless sufficient consideration is given to the safety and security of more than a million refugees and there is no credible implementation plan,” White House national security spokesman John Kirby said.
Netanyahu’s operational plans for military action in Rafah, which his cabinet is set to discuss this week, include civilian evacuation, he said.
“It is impossible to achieve the goal of the war of eliminating Hamas by leaving four Hamas battalions in Rafah,” Netanyahu’s office has said. “On the contrary, it is clear that intense activity in Rafah requires that civilians evacuate the areas of combat.”
Qatar will mediate further discussions between Hamas and Israel in Cairo to shore-up the potential cease-fire deal. Hamas originally demanded the release of 1,500 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for 40 Israel hostages, and Israel agreed during previous negotiations to release Palestinian prisoners for Israeli hostages at a three to one ratio. Hamas has not yet agreed to the framework discussed in Paris.
About 134 hostages remain held by Hamas, and dozens are estimated to have died in captivity already.
Just last week, Israeli Defense Forces released a video of what appears to be Shiri Bibas and her sons, Kfir and Ariel, being kidnapped from Khan Yunis on October 7. Kfir, the youngest hostage Hamas captured, celebrated his first birthday in Gaza in January. Netanyahu said that the footage “touches the heart and reminds us of who we are dealing with — cruel baby kidnappers. We will hold them to account.”