Senior administration officials indicated the relationship dynamics between isolated Israel and its primary military backer became clear to both leaders following Netanyahu's unauthorized attack on Hamas negotiators in Doha. "Without the United States, Israel will not exist. And you don't have to say that," one official stated, adding that Netanyahu "is smart enough to know that the president holds all the cards. The last thing he can afford to do is lose the president," The Washington Post reported.

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The changes, which were made in recent weeks and were designed to bring Hamas to agree, include a a dramatic change that Israel Hayom can now reveal:

The most significant shift involves Israel's apparent acceptance of complete military withdrawal to the Gaza Strip border, abandoning positions captured during the conflict. However, one critical exception remains – Israeli forces would maintain their presence along the Morag Corridor in the southern Gaza Strip, which separates the southern tip of the enclave, including Rafah, from its northern part.

Effectively confirming the New York Times report, an Israeli source said that the emerging deal will include release of 10 of the remaining living hostages and recovery of 18 deceased captives that Hamas still holds in Gaza, in exchange for Palestinian prisoners.

According to the New York Times report, the main change in the new proposal is the timeline for hostage releases and recovery of bodies, which will spread across five points over a 60-day period. The previous proposal stated that the ten living hostages would be released within seven days. Senior Hamas officials claimed in recent weeks in response that this would allow Israel to resume fighting on the eighth day. Now, sources close to the organization say there is "satisfaction" with guarantees for ceasefire implementation.

According to the publication, Hamas will also refrain from filmed handover ceremonies like those it conducted when releasing hostages during the two-month pause that began in January.

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Witkoff's sharp condemnation followed Hamas's dismissal of the Trump administration's Gaza ceasefire framework, with the Palestinian terror organization instead presenting demands for a permanent end to hostilities and Israel's complete evacuation from the coastal enclave. The American envoy urged Hamas to embrace the original proposal, stating: "Hamas should accept the framework proposal we put forward as the basis for proximity talks, which we can begin immediately this coming week."

Hamas issued its counter-response after receiving the US-brokered framework that Witkoff transmitted to the organization on Thursday. The terror group's brief statement outlined its position calling for a lasting ceasefire and "a comprehensive withdrawal from the Gaza Strip" while seeking assurances regarding humanitarian assistance delivery to Gaza.

The Hamas alternative encompasses a prisoner exchange arrangement involving 10 living Israeli hostages alongside 18 bodies in return for an unspecified number of Palestinian detainees. Specific details concerning Hamas' counter-framework remained unavailable immediately after the organization's announcement.

Israeli leadership aligned with Witkoff's criticism, as the Prime Minister's Office condemned Hamas for its "intransigence" while reaffirming Israel's commitment to securing hostage releases and eliminating Hamas. The original proposal that sparked Hamas' counter-response had received Israeli approval and featured comparable prisoner exchange terms alongside a 60-day cessation of hostilities in Gaza.

President Donald Trump expressed optimism on Friday regarding ceasefire prospects, indicating Israel and Hamas were "very close" to reaching an agreement while promising imminent developments, The Washington Post noted. However, a Hamas representative, requesting anonymity due to the sensitive nature of ongoing discussions, informed The Washington Post that same day that the organization planned to propose "amendments" to the Israeli-American framework to secure war-ending guarantees.

The fundamental divide centers on Hamas's persistent demand for a permanent conflict resolution and complete Israeli military withdrawal from Gaza – conditions that Israeli officials have historically found unacceptable as they seek to preserve operational flexibility. Hamas has consistently advocated for these terms throughout previous negotiation rounds.

Israel delivered another significant blow to the weakened terror organization on Saturday, with the Israel Defense Forces announcing the elimination of Mohammed Sinwar in an earlier operation this month. Israeli intelligence identified Sinwar, brother of eliminated Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, as the newest commanding officer of Hamas's military apparatus.

Simultaneously, COGAT, the Israeli Defense Ministry coordination unit overseeing Gaza aid operations, reported that 579 trucks loaded with humanitarian supplies including food provisions, medical equipment and flour entered Gaza through the Kerem Shalom crossing on Saturday. Israel had imposed substantial restrictions on aid deliveries after the previous ceasefire collapsed in March, drawing criticism from major Western allies before gradually easing limitations in late May under international pressure.

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The Israel Prison Service (IPS) blocked convicted murderer Marie Pizem, who was found guilty of killing her 4.5-year-old daughter Rose, from marrying a Palestinian prisoner serving a life sentence for murdering an Israeli citizen. Authorities intervened after discovering what they believe was an attempt to forge wedding documents in violation of regulations, partially motivated by a desire to secure conjugal visits.

According to exclusive information obtained by Israel Hayom, officials at Neve Tirza women's prison, where Pizem is incarcerated, and Ayalon prison, where the Palestinian prisoner is held, received a summons letter from the Sharia court in Jaffa two days ago. The letter requested a hearing to verify and approve their marriage.

The horrific murder of young Rose that shocked the nation occurred in 2008. Pizem and Rose's grandfather concealed the murder for three months until Rose's great-grandmother contacted welfare authorities, triggering a police investigation that led to the discovery of Rose's body in a suitcase in Tel Aviv's Yarkon River.

The prisoner Pizem attempted to marry is Dar Atzi Mughad, a Palestinian resident of Beit Liqya who is serving a life sentence for murdering 70-year-old David Bar Kapra in 2015.

IPS regulations do permit prisoners to marry outside prison walls during authorized furlough periods. Prisoners who don't qualify for furlough can request permission to hold a ceremony within the prison facility. However, Israel Hayom has learned that neither Pizem nor Mughad submitted such a request and instead concealed their wedding plans entirely – a direct violation of IPS protocols. Additionally, both are serving life sentences, meaning their transport would require exceptional security measures and special escort arrangements.

The IPS is now investigating suspicions that the document allegedly sent from the court actually contained different names, suggesting the prisoners attempted to forge it. In response, IPS Central District Commander Maj. Gen. Shlomi Sagi has prohibited any further action on the matter and announced that both prisoners will face disciplinary proceedings for their conduct.

"This represents a serious violation of IPS procedures," Sagi said. "As part of maintaining prison governance, we will not tolerate disciplinary violations by inmates, and both will face disciplinary proceedings." Sources within the IPS believe the pair attempted to fabricate their marriage primarily to secure conjugal visiting rights.

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Israel faced growing calls on Thursday to release five Palestinians who have been on hunger strike for weeks to protest a controversial policy of holding them indefinitely without charge, including one who has been fasting for 120 days and is in severe condition.

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Israel says the policy, known as "administrative detention," is needed to detain suspects without disclosing sensitive intelligence, while Palestinians and human rights groups say it denies them due process. Suspects can be held for months or years without seeing the evidence against them.

Palestinians have been holding rallies across the West Bank and the Gaza Strip in solidarity with the hunger strike and to protest administrative detention. Prisoners have held a number of hunger strikes in recent years to protest the policy and to campaign for better prison conditions, but the latest appears to be among the most serious.

The Israeli military did not respond to a request for comment.

The five Palestinians, ranging in age from 28 to 45, have been on hunger strike for at least 32 days. A sixth prisoner ended his 113-day hunger strike on Thursday after being told he would be released in three months, his lawyer said.

Kayed Fasfous, 32, has been on a hunger strike for at least 120 days and is hospitalized in Israel. His weight has dropped from 95 to 45 kilograms (210 to 100 pounds), according to a recent evaluation by Dr. Amit Tirosh, an Israeli physician, on behalf of Physicians for Human Rights-Israel.

Tirosh called his condition "life-threatening" and said that even if he stops the hunger strike, he will still need to spend several weeks in the hospital. He said hunger strikes can cause "severe, prolonged, and irreparable" brain and cognitive damage.

Fasfous' detention has been suspended on health grounds, but Israel has refused his request to be transferred to a hospital in the West Bank, where he says he would halt his hunger strike.

Hundreds of Palestinians, including Fasfous' brother, took part in a demonstration in the West Bank town of Dhahiriya on Thursday in solidarity with the hunger strikers.

"The only demand of Kayed is freedom," said his brother, Khalid Fasfous. He said his brother told the family "he will be victorious if he is released or if he is martyred."

An Israel Prison Service official said three of the hunger strikers were in stable condition under 24-hour medical supervision in a prison medical facility, while another, who has been fasting for 30 days, did not require that degree of care. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because the prison service does not generally share medical information about prisoners.

Israel's prison service said it was holding at least 488 people in administrative detention.

Roy Yellin, of the left-wing nongovernmental organization B'Tselem, asserted administrative detainees are held in "a Kafkaesque legal reality that Israel has created specifically for Palestinians under which they are detained for an indefinite period of time without real legal recourse to prove their innocence."

He said administrative detainees are often held on suspicion that they might carry out an attack, with military judges granting "rubber-stamp" approval.

"Administrative detention is a measure that Israel used almost exclusively for Palestinians and almost never for Jews," he said, calling it part of the "apartheid reality" of Israeli rule.

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Legal advocacy organization Shurat Hadin-Israel Law Center has submitted an urgent request to the heads of the Israel Prison Service demanding Palestinian arch-terrorist Marwan Barghouti be denied visits and other perks.

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Shurat Hadin submitted the request in the name of the parents of Ronen Landau, who was murdered in a 2001 terrorist attack in the Jerusalem neighborhood of Givat Ze'ev.

In the letter, the advocacy group asserted Barghouti, who is currently serving five life sentences, had received excessive and unreasonable benefits that other security prisoners do not have access to due to foreign consideration.

They further noted that Barghouti, a popular figure with Palestinians, had either explicitly or in an implied manner been allowed to engage in political activity in the Palestinian Authority from within prison walls and even run in the upcoming Palestinian elections for PA president. Likewise, the group claimed security prisoners are not eligible to vote or run in Palestinian elections nor are they authorized to engage in activities pertaining to those elections within Israeli territory without the government's explicit authorization.

On March 31, Barghouti's wife, Fadwa, registered his parliamentary list in the May elections.

The Jerusalem District Court found the PA and Barghouti guilty in the 2001 shooting attack that killed Ronen Landau, who was 17 at the time.

In a statement, Landau's parents Michal and Shmuel said, "It cannot be that a convicted arch-terrorist with five life sentences can run an election campaign from inside the prison walls unhindered.

"We demand an immediate end to the visits and benefits Marwan Barghouti receives at the expense of the blood of the Jewish terror victims."

Shurat Hadin President Nitsana Darshan-Leitner concluded the letter, which was dispatched Thursday night, saying: "My clients insist the Israel Prison Service treat Barghouti the same as any other security prisoner serving a sentence for the serious crimes he committed, including ceasing to allow Barghouti to receive visits on behalf of Palestinian Authority officials or any visit by a person that is not entitled to meet with him in accordance with the rules.

"Likewise, it will not allow Barghouti's participation in political activity from within the prison walls, including not allowing him to run in the framework of the expected elections in the Palestinian Authority and not allowing him to engage in ancillary activities aimed at promoting his …. election within prison walls."

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Ofer Cassif, the lone Jewish lawmaker representing the Joint Arab List in the Knesset, referred to Palestinian security prisoners as "political prisoners" in a post to Facebook marking Palestinian Prisoners Day.

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Cassif also shared an image of a prison cell with the caption: "May all the captives be released!"

"The vast majority of Palestinian prisoners in Israel have not been charged with criminal offenses – they are political prisoners due to their opposition to the military occupation of their people.

"From here, I send a message of freedom, of hope, and peace. We must stop holding captives, strive for an agreement that ends the occupation, stops the bloodshed, and leads to prosperity for all those residing in the land."

Cassif recently made headlines for injuries he sustained when police punched him and wrestled him to the ground in a protest against planned evictions in east Jerusalem last week.

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The approval to buy the system was given after Public Security Minister appealed a decision last week that prevented the transfer of the funds until a functioning government is formed and a national budget is passed.

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The Israel Prison Service, which falls under the jurisdiction of the Public Security Ministry, had been exploring ‎the possibility of limiting Palestinian security ‎prisoners' time in the shower, after learning the prisoners were wasting it on purpose.‎

The price of the water control system is NIS 2.3 million ($672,807), but the Public Security Ministry believes the water savings will more than cover the cost.

As a reminder, Israel Hayom first reported in July 2018 that security prisoners had wasted upwards of ‎‎hundreds of thousands of cubic feet of water on ‎purpose to undercut Israel's water supply, at an estimated cost of millions of shekels. ‎

According to the report, IPS data showed that ‎security prisoners' wards used up far more water than ‎the criminal wards, whose inmates spend less time in ‎their cells.‎ The discrepancy between the wards' water use was so ‎great, that it led the IPS to believe that ‎Palestinian inmates were leaving their showers running for ‎hours on purpose, to waste the water.‎

An analysis of the data showed that ‎security prisoners use about 3.5 times more water a ‎year than the average Israeli – 250 cubic meters ‎‎(‎8,830 cubic feet‎) compared to 70 cubic meters ‎‎(2,472 cubic feet).‎

As there are currently 5,800 Palestinian security ‎prisoners in Israeli jails, they seem to waste an ‎average of 750,000 cubic meters (26,486,000 cubic ‎feet) of water a year, costing taxpayers some 5.6 ‎million shekels ($1.5 million).‎

"Unlike other inmates, security prisoners spend most ‎of the day in their cells. Due to security constraints, if a ward ‎does not have a common bathroom, the showers and ‎lavatories are often located inside the cells, which ‎allows for the overuse of water," the IPS said in 2018.

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