Hamas responds to US-brokered Gaza ceasefire proposal in ‘a positive spirit’

Cairo/Tel Aviv: Hamas said it had responded on Friday in “a positive spirit” to a US-brokered Gaza ceasefire proposal and was prepared to enter into talks on implementing the deal, which envisages a release of hostages and negotiations on ending the conflict.

US President Donald Trump had earlier announced a “final proposal” for a 60-day ceasefire in the almost 21-month-old war between Israel and Hamas, stating he anticipated a reply from the parties in coming hours.

Palestinians survey the destruction at a school used as a shelter after it was struck by an Israeli airstrike in Gaza City.Credit: AP

Hamas wrote on its official website: “The Hamas movement has completed its internal consultations as well as discussions with Palestinian factions and forces regarding the latest proposal by the mediators to halt the aggression against our people in Gaza.

“The movement has delivered its response to the brotherly mediators, which was characterised by a positive spirit. Hamas is fully prepared, with all seriousness, to immediately enter a new round of negotiations on the mechanism for implementing this framework.”

In a sign of potential challenges still facing the sides, a Palestinian official of a militant group allied with Hamas said concerns remained over humanitarian aid, passage through the Rafah crossing to Egypt and clarity over a timetable of Israeli troop withdrawals.

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Trump said on Tuesday that Israel had agreed “to the necessary conditions to finalise” a 60-day ceasefire, during which efforts would be made to end the US ally’s war in the Palestinian enclave.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is due to meet Trump in Washington on Monday, has yet to comment on Trump’s announcement, and in their public statements the two sides remain far apart. Netanyahu has repeatedly said Hamas must be disarmed, a position the militant group, which is thought to be holding 20 living hostages, has so far refused to discuss.

Israeli media cited an Israeli official as saying Israel had received and was looking into Hamas’ response to the ceasefire proposal.

An Egyptian security official told Reuters that Egypt, which along with Qatar is mediating ceasefire efforts, had seen Hamas’ response and said: “It includes positive signs that an agreement is near, but there are some demands from Hamas that need to be worked on.”

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Trump has said he would be “very firm” with Netanyahu on the need for a speedy Gaza ceasefire, while noting the Israeli leader wants one as well.

“We hope it’s going to happen. And we’re looking forward to it happening sometime next week,” he told reporters earlier this week. “We want to get the hostages out.”

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