Netanyahu denies Hamas accepted deal amid reports of imminent agreement

Israeli officials claim deal will be signed by Thursday, despite Prime Minister denying reports Hamas has approved proposal and with lingering questions regarding support for deal within Israeli government.

By David Rosenberg, World Israel News

Israeli officials said Wednesday afternoon that a hostage deal and ceasefire agreement will be finalized with Hamas either on Wednesday night or on Thursday, according to reports by multiple media outlets.

Also on Wednesday, an unnamed Israeli official told the Israeli news site Walla  that Hamas’s Gaza chief Mohammed Sinwar had okayed the current proposal on the table in Doha, Qatar.

“There is a breakthrough in the hostage-deal negotiations in Doha. Hamas military leader in Gaza Mohammed Sinwar gave his OK,” the official was quoted as saying.

Israel’s national broadcaster Kan cited Palestinian sources who also claimed a breakthrough has been reached in the negotiations and that a deal is likely to be presented by Thursday.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, however, downplayed the reports of an impending deal and rejected claims that Sinwar, brother of the slain former leader of Hamas, had accepted the latest hostage deal proposal.

“Contrary to reports, the Hamas terrorist organization has yet to provide an answer regarding the deal,” the prime minister’s office said in a statement Wednesday afternoon.

If negotiators in Doha manage to reach an agreement, Netanyahu will face opposition from within his own government in ratifying the deal.

National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir (Otzma Yehudit) has hinted that his party will bolt the coalition should the current proposal be accepted, and he boasted on Tuesday that he had torpedoed previous bids to reach a hostage deal that would end the war in Gaza.

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, chairman of the Religious Zionist Party and an erstwhile ally of Ben-Gvir, hinted earlier this week that he would opposed the deal in its current form, but he took a more nuanced position on Wednesday. In a video statement released Wednesday morning, Smotrich said he would insist the war in Gaza not be ended prematurely but refrained from ruling out support for the hostage deal, which would include a three-stage ceasefire.

Israeli media outlets have reported that Netanyahu is pressuring Smotrich to remain in the government even if it ratifies the current ceasefire plan.

The ultra-Orthodox Shas and United Torah Judaism parties have already vowed their support for the deal, while Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar’s New Hope party is also expected to vote in favor of the ceasefire agreement.

However, seven Likud lawmakers signed onto a letter earlier this week expressing opposition to the deal.

Opposition lawmakers, including Opposition leader Yair Lapid, have offered to provide Netanyahu a parliamentary safety net should the deal come up for ratification in the Knesset.

Benjamin NetanyahuHamashostage deal