Hamas and Islamic Jihad have approved the Gaza ceasefire and prisoner exchange deal chalked out amid Israel’s aerial operations in the strip, Palestinian sources in the know of talks told news agency AFP.
Under the truce deal agreed upon, Hamas will swap 33 hostages held in Gaza in exchange for 1,000 Palestinian prisoners languishing in Israeli cells.
The deal, which according to Qatar, is in the “final stages”
Israeli government spokesman David Mencer on Tuesday confirmed to AFP that Israel was seeking the release of 33 hostages as part of the first stage.
“Yes, there are 33 hostages that we want released,” Mencer said during an online media briefing, adding that Israel was willing to release hundreds of Palestinian prisoners in exchange.
“Israel is prepared to pay a heavy price — in the hundreds,” he further added.
Two sources close to Hamas told AFP that Israel would release about 1,000 Palestinian prisoners, including those with “lengthy sentences”.
Earlier, Hamas indicated it had agreed to release 34 hostages in the first stage of a multi-phase deal, but Israeli forces retrieved the body of one of those listed, reducing the total to 33.
Buffer zone
The second phase of negotiations would begin on the “16th day” after the successful implementation of the first phase. This phase would cover the release of the remaining captives, including “male soldiers, men of military age, and the bodies of slain hostages”, the Times of Israel reported.
It has been reported that under the proposed deal Israel would maintain a buffer zone within Gaza.
Israeli forces were expected to remain up to “800 metres (yards) inside Gaza stretching from Rafah in the south to Beit Hanun in the north,” a source close to Hamas told AFP.
Prolonged 1+Year of Talks
The US, Qatar and Egypt have worked for more than a year on talks to end the war in Gaza. In Cairo, an Egyptian security official told Reuters on Monday that the draft sent to the two warring sides did not comprise the final agreement but “aims to resolve outstanding issues that had hindered previous negotiations”.
Families of the roughly 100 hostages still held in Gaza are pressing Netanyahu to reach a deal. Israel’s campaign in Gaza has killed over 46,000 Palestinians, the majority women and children, according to Hamas health ministry.
