Demonstrators in Tel Aviv demand the release of Israelis held hostage in the Gaza Strip in March. (Photo by Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90)
A Hamas delegation, led by Khalil al-Hayya, has departed to Cairo to discuss the plan with Egyptian officials.
By Vered Weiss, World Israel News
Hamas is reportedly willing to free all of the remaining hostages in exchange for a five-year ceasefire, according to a Hamas official.
However, the terror group is divided over the willingness to disarm and cede control of Gaza.
A Hamas delegation, led by Khalil al-Hayya, has departed to Cairo to discuss the plan with Egyptian officials.
One Hamas source told AFP, “Hamas is ready for a one-time prisoner exchange for a five-year cessation of hostilities.”
Although three Hamas officials expressed a willingness to lay down their arms, Taher al-Nono, another senior Hamas official, said the terror group’s weapons “are not under negotiation.”
Despite the disagreement within Hamas over disarming, the fact that three officials have expressed the willingness to do so is an indication of the pressure on the terror group’s leadership to cede military and political control of Gaza.
“The Gaza population is putting tremendous pressure on Hamas commanders in the Gaza Strip to take such a step,” the terrorist group sources told Israel’s N12 news outlet. “This pressure comes with the certainty that Arab countries will not send substantial aid for the reconstruction of Gaza, nor will they send battalions for policing as long as Hamas remains an armed underground.”
The three officials also acknowledged that a final agreement may require the expulsion of Hamas leader Mohammad Sinwar and Gaza Brigade commander Izz ad-Din Haddad from Gaza.
Although Al-Nono has rejected any demand that Hamas disarm, he added, “We do not reject the idea of a truce or its duration, and we are willing to discuss it within an official negotiation. We may consider any serious proposals to end the war.”
However, Nono emphasized, “The weapon of resistance is not negotiable and will remain in our hands as long as the occupation exists.”
Israel’s Deputy Foreign Minister Sharren Haskel said she did not believe the negotiations would lead to a breakthrough deal unless Israel’s core demands are met.
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