An Israeli negotiating team was set to travel to Qatar Sunday for indirect talks with the Hamas terror group on a hostage release and ceasefire deal, as mediators bear down on the sides amid intensifying efforts to clinch an agreement.
The Prime Minister’s Office announced the plans late Saturday, but also cautioned in a statement that Hamas had suggested several “unacceptable” amendments to a brewing US- and Israel-backed proposal.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dispatched the team to Qatar just as he was set to depart for Washington to meet with US President Donald Trump Monday for talks on Gaza, Iran and other subjects.
On Friday, Hamas issued a “positive” response to the latest ceasefire framework currently under discussion. The proposed plan would involve the return of around half of both the living and deceased hostages currently held by armed groups in Gaza, over a 60-day period and across five separate stages. According to an Arab diplomat from one of the mediating countries, the plan envisions the release of eight living hostages on day one, followed by two more on day 50. In parallel, five bodies would be handed over on day seven, another five on day 30, and eight more on day 60. After these transfers, 22 hostages would remain in captivity, with 10 believed to be alive. It remains unclear which party—Israel or Hamas—would select the hostages for release.
A source involved in the ongoing mediation confirmed that Hamas has submitted three proposed modifications to the current framework. These include a stipulation that negotiations toward a permanent ceasefire continue until a resolution is reached; a full restoration of humanitarian aid under the supervision of the United Nations and other international agencies; and a withdrawal of Israeli forces to positions held prior to the collapse of the March ceasefire.
Israel’s Prime Minister’s Office acknowledged receiving the proposed amendments on Friday night and stated they are “not acceptable to Israel.” Nevertheless, it confirmed that an Israeli delegation will travel to Doha on Sunday for further talks. The PMO did not indicate which specific proposals were rejected.
As the country waits to find out if a hostage deal will truly materialize, and what shape it will take if it does, families of the hostages and allies rallied across the country on Saturday night, urging the government to seal a deal for the release of all the hostages at once even at the cost of agreeing to Hamas’s demand for a permanent end to the war.
