Benjamin Netanyahu accepts US' latest Gaza ceasefire proposal as Hamas says it's still reviewing it

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said he has accepted US Middle East Envoy Steve Witkoff's connection for a ceasefire successful Gaza and captive exchange.

"Israel accepts nan caller Witkoff outline," Netanyahu reportedly said during a gathering pinch nan families of hostages being held by Hamas, according to a connection released by his agency and picked up by Israeli media.

Hamas officials gave nan Israeli-approved draught a cool response, but said they wanted to study nan connection much intimately earlier giving a general answer.

“The Zionist response, successful essence, intends perpetuating nan business and continuing nan sidesplitting and famine,” said Bassem Naim, a apical Hamas official. He said it “does not respond to immoderate of our people’s demands, foremost among which is stopping nan warfare and famine.”

Nonetheless, he said nan group would study nan connection “with each nationalist responsibility.”

It comes aft Witkoff said earlier this week that he was optimistic astir brokering an statement to extremity much than 19 months of warfare successful Gaza and unafraid nan merchandise of nan hostages being held successful nan Strip by Hamas.

"I person immoderate very bully feelings astir getting to a semipermanent solution — a impermanent ceasefire and a semipermanent resolution, a serene solution of that conflict," he said connected Wednesday.

What is successful nan latest proposal?

Witkoff has not made nationalist what nan latest connection contains but a Hamas charismatic and an Egyptian charismatic independently confirmed immoderate of nan details.

They said connected information of anonymity to talk nan delicate talks.

They opportunity it calls for a 60-day region successful fighting, guarantees of superior negotiations starring to a semipermanent truce and assurances that Israel will not resume hostilities aft nan merchandise of hostages, as it did successful March erstwhile nan erstwhile ceasefire collapsed.

Hamas would merchandise 10 surviving hostages and a number of bodies during nan 60-day region successful speech for much than 1,100 Palestinians imprisoned by Israel, including 100 serving agelong sentences aft being convicted of deadly attacks.

Each day, hundreds of trucks carrying nutrient and humanitarian assistance would beryllium allowed to participate Gaza, wherever experts opportunity a astir three-month Israeli blockade has pushed overmuch of nan organization to nan brink of famine.

What do Israel and Hamas want?

Getting some sides to work together to a woody has been tricky pinch some Israel and Hamas diverging connected respective cardinal issues.

Hamas insists connected a lasting ceasefire, a afloat Israeli subject withdrawal from Gaza and an influx of humanitarian aid.

Israel nevertheless has consistently squashed those demands, saying it would only work together to impermanent pauses successful fighting to facilitate nan merchandise of hostages and that its eventual extremity is nan full demolition of Hamas.

Hamas still holds 58 hostages, astir a 3rd of whom are believed to still beryllium alive.

Netanyahu has besides insisted that Israel will indefinite “security control” complete Gaza and facilitate what he refers to arsenic nan voluntary emigration of overmuch of its population.

Palestinians and astir of nan world organization person rejected plans to resettle Gaza’s population, a move experts say would apt break world law.

Hamas has said it will only merchandise nan remaining hostages, its only bargaining chip, successful return for more Palestinian prisoners but offered to springiness up powerfulness to a committee of politically independent Palestinians that could oversee reconstruction of nan enclave.

The conflict complete whether immoderate ceasefire should beryllium impermanent aliases imperishable has been a persistent sticking constituent successful talks, brokered by nan US, Egypt and Qatar, that person stumbled on for much than 18 months.

The warfare began erstwhile Hamas militants attacked confederate Israel connected 7 October 2023, sidesplitting astir 1,200 people, astir of them civilians.

A consequent Israeli violative has to day killed astatine slightest 54,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to nan Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry whose figures do not separate betwixt fighters and civilians.

The Israeli subject says 850 of its soldiers person died since nan commencement of nan war.

The violative has destroyed immense swathes of Gaza and displaced astir 90% of its organization of astir 2 cardinal Palestinians, pinch hundreds of thousands surviving successful squalid shelter camps and unused schools.

Hamas has been vastly depleted militarily and lost astir each of its elder leaders successful Gaza.