As casualties mount in the war between Israel and Hamas and international pressure to reduce violence grows, international mediators are floating proposals for a new ceasefire. But both sides, at least publicly, have noted the apparently difficult conditions, leading diplomats to say they believe an agreement on a durable truce remains a long way off.
In late November, a week-long cease-fire saw Hamas release more than 100 hostages taken during their attack on Israel on October 7. In turn, Israel released approximately 240 Palestinian prisoners and detainees, and allowed more humanitarian aid to enter Gaza. Mediators in Qatar hope the ceasefire will lay the groundwork for an end to the conflict.
But the truce has expired, and Israeli forces have deepened the war, which military officials say could last “many more months” as they press their goal of dismantling Hamas. As the fighting drags on, fears grow that the conflict could spread, with Israel trading cross-border attacks with the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah and Yemen-based Houthi militants launching strikes against in the Red Sea shipping, while US forces bomb what they describe as Iranian. targets in Iraq and Syria.
With more than 20,000 Palestinians killed in Gaza since the start of Israel’s military campaign, according to Gazan health officials, mediators between the two sides continue to seek ways to stop the violence. A drumbeat of announcements of Israeli soldiers killed in combat – the military announced three more on Wednesday, bringing the total since October 7 to 498 – has also rattled a nation unaccustomed to taking of such casualties.
Egypt’s government has circulated a proposal calling for further exchanges of hostages and prisoners as a step toward a permanent ceasefire, according to three diplomats in the region who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issues. -conversation But diplomats warned that neither Israel nor Hamas appeared close to agreeing to such a proposal.
On Monday night, Israel’s war cabinet discussed various ceasefire proposals on the table, including the Egyptian one, according to an Israeli official who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss confidential deliberations. Publicly, Israeli officials continue to tell the public to expect a long and difficult war ahead.
In an opinion essay published Monday in The Wall Street Journal, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reiterated his position that Hamas must be destroyed and Gaza demilitarized — statements that appear to rule out any role for Hamas. in Gaza after the war.
However, the domestic pressure on Mr. Netanyahu’s call to work more aggressively to free the remaining hostages has increased since three Israeli hostages were mistakenly killed by Israeli soldiers in Gaza City this month.
Hamas, in public statements, appeared to reject any agreement to release the remaining hostages if it did not lead to a sustainable end to the conflict. In an interview with The New York Times on Wednesday, Zaher Jabareen, a member of the group’s political leadership, said the first step should be to stop killing people in Gaza.
“Our position, which we have communicated to all parties, is that we are asking for a comprehensive ceasefire before we discuss other issues,” he said.
Several countries including Egypt have submitted proposals, but he could not discuss the details, Mr. Jabareen added.
Since the start of the war, both sides have made tough public statements even as talks have continued privately, mostly through the government of Qatar, which brokered a ceasefire in November. Despite misleading statements by some Israeli officials, the government said it plans to move to a less intense phase of the conflict, after repeated pressure from the United States, its strongest ally, to dial back down the conflict and limit damage to civilians.
Ron Dermer, a top adviser to Mr. Netanyahu, traveled to Washington on Tuesday and met with Jake Sullivan, President Biden’s national security adviser, and Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken. A White House official said the talks covered a shift to another phase of the war to “maximize focus on high-value Hamas targets,” efforts to free remaining hostages and “planning for the day after” the war, a reference to how Gaza will be governed once the conflict is over.
Isabel Kershner, Ben Hubbard and Erica L. Green contributed reporting.
