Egypt has put forward an ambitious, initial proposal to end the Israel-Hamas war with a cease-fire, a phased hostage release and the creation of a Palestinian government of experts who would administer the Gaza Strip and West Bank, a senior Egyptian official and a European diplomat said Monday.
Video: PM Netanyahu with the troops in Gaza December 25, 2023 / Credit: Avi Ohayon/GPO
The Egyptian proposal, worked out with the Gulf nation of Qatar, has been presented to Israel, Hamas, the United States, and European governments but still appeared preliminary. It falls short of Israel's professed goal of outright crushing Hamas after its Oct. 7 attack on southern Israel, which triggered the war. It would appear not to meet Israel's insistence on keeping military control over Gaza for an extended period after the war. It also is unclear if Hamas would agree to relinquish power. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed the war would not stop.
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"We are expanding the fight in the coming days and this will be a long battle and it isn't close to finished," he said, speaking to members of his Likud Party.
He delivered a similar message in a speech in Israel's parliament, where families of the more than 100 Israeli hostages still held in Gaza held signs calling for Israel to reach a deal to bring them home immediately. "Now! Now!," they chanted from the gallery.
Netanyahu and other members of the War Cabinet are to meet later Monday, an Israeli official said, but would not say if they would discuss the Egyptian proposal. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media.
Despite growing international pressure for a halt, Israel has said it is determined to destroy Hamas' governing and military capabilities after the Oct, 7 attack, in which terrorists rampaged in southern Israeli communities, killing around 1,200 people and abducting around 240. Israel also says it aims to free 129 people still held hostage.
The Egyptian proposal was an ambitious bid not only to end the war but also to lay out a plan for the day after.
It calls for an initial cease-fire of up to two weeks during which Palestinian terrorists would free 40 to 50 hostages, among them women, the sick, and the elderly, in return for the release of 120-150 Palestinians from Israeli prisons, the Egyptian official said. He spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the ongoing talks.
At the same time, negotiations would continue on extending the cease-fire and the release of more hostages and bodies held by Palestinian terrorists, he said. Egypt and Qatar would also work with all Palestinian factions, including Hamas, to agree on the establishment of a government of experts, he said. The government would rule Gaza and the West Bank for a transitional period as Palestinian factions settle their disputes and agree on a roadmap to hold presidential and parliamentary elections, he added.
In the meantime, Israel and Hamas would negotiate a comprehensive "all-for-all" deal, he said. This would include the release of all remaining hostages in return for all Palestinian prisoners in Israel, as well as the Israeli military's withdrawal from Gaza and the Palestinian terrorists' halting of rocket attacks into Israel. Close to 8,000 Palestinians are held by Israel on security-related charges or convictions, according to Palestinian figures.
Egyptian officials discussed the outline of the proposal with Ismail Haniyeh, the Qatar-based political leader of Hamas, who visited Cairo last week and planned to discuss it with the leader of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad group, Ziyad al-Nakhalah, who arrived in Cairo on Sunday, the official said.
A Western diplomat said they are aware of Egypt's proposal. But the diplomat, who demanded anonymity to discuss the matter, doubts that Netanyahu and his hawkish government would accept the entire proposal. The diplomat gave no further details.
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