CAIRO: Hamas reiterates is readiness to sign a Gaza ceasefire agreement and is waiting for Israel’s response, senior Hamas official Abdel...
CAIRO: Hamas reiterates is readiness to sign a Gaza ceasefire agreement and is waiting for Israel’s response, senior Hamas official Abdel Rahman Shadid said.
"Hamas reiterates that it is ready to sign a deal of the exchange (of Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners) and has already presented its comprehensive proposal on this matter. But Israel is hampering the talks. Now, the ball is in their court," the Al Jazeera television channel quoted him as saying.
According to the senior Hamas official, the movement requested a five-year ceasefire in Gaza and relevant regional and international guarantees. However, in his words, the Israeli government "rejected this proposal and refused to cease hostilities."
"Despite this, Hamas reassured the mediators that it will consider with full responsibility any proposals providing for a permanent ceasefire, the withdrawal of the Israeli military from Gaza and a fair exchange deal," he noted.
Israel and Hamas agreed on the release of hostages held in the Gaza Strip and a ceasefire in the enclave on January 15. The three-stage agreement came into effect on January 19. Its first phase ended on March 1. During the first phase, the sides were supposed to reach an agreement on the implementation of the second phase of the ceasefire but they failed to do this.
On March 18, Israel resumed hostilities in the Gaza Strip and delivered a series of strikes on Hamas targets, thus cutting short the ceasefire that had been in place in the enclave since January 2025. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office explained the move by Hamas' rejections of proposals advanced after talks with US envoy Steve Witkoff. It claimed that the goal of the operation was to release all of the Israeli hostages. Hamas placed responsibility for this latest spiral of escalation in Gaza on Israel and the United States.
Another round of talks between Egyptian mediators and Hamas representatives were held in Cairo on April 26. Two days later, Israeli negotiators visited the Egyptian capital city. However, neither of the sides has officially informed about the results of these consultations.
According to the latest data from the Israeli side, Hamas and its allies are still holding 59 hostages in the Gaza Strip.
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