Hamas will free 8 living hostages during 70-day ceasefire under new deal – report

Neither Israel nor Hamas has refused or accepted Cairo’s plan, according to the report.

By World Israel News Staff

Egyptian mediators have put forth a new proposal for a hostage deal and ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas, a Saudi-owned newspaper reported Monday, as the war in the Gaza Strip rages on.

The London-based Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper cited an Egyptian source who claimed that Cairo has drafted a new plan, under which Hamas will release a total of 16 Israeli captives still held in the Gaza Strip, 8 of whom are still alive, in exchange for a third ceasefire, lasting between 40 to 70 days.

As with the November 2023 and January 2025 ceasefire deals, the freeing of Israeli hostages would be accompanied by the release of a significant number of jailed Arab terrorists.

Egypt is said to be presenting its plan to Israel and Hamas as a compromise between Israel’s demand that any new deal include the release of at least 11 living hostages, and Hamas’ refusal to free any more than 5, in exchange for a 50-day truce.

Under the Egyptian proposal, the release of the eight living captives would be staggered over the course of the ceasefire.

Neither Israel nor Hamas has refused or accepted Cairo’s plan, the report added.

Hamas still holds a total of 59 hostages in the Gaza Strip, including 35 captives whom Israeli intelligence has reason to believe are dead, with 24 who are likely still alive.

After the six-week ceasefire initiated on January 19 lapsed on March 2 with no agreement for a continuation of the deal, Israel has ratcheted up measures to pressure Hamas into freeing additional hostages, halting the entry of aid to Gaza, cutting off the Strip from Israel’s electrical grid, and resuming hostilities against the terror group.

The Hamas-run Gaza health ministry claims that since hostilities were resumed on March 18, over 1,000 people have died in the Strip as a result of the war.