Hamas has rejected the latest Israeli proposal for the release of the remaining hostages and a new ceasefire because it does not include an end to the war, several Israeli media reports on Thursday cited senior Hamas official Khalil al-Hayya as saying.
In a speech, al-Hayya stated that the Islamists would not agree to partial agreements.
The last ceasefire phase ended about a month ago after Israel and the Palestinian militant group could not agree on the conditions for the next phase of the deal.
Hamas demands the implementation of a second phase of the agreement, which includes an end to the war and the withdrawal of Israeli soldiers. This phase was originally supposed to begin in early March.
Hamas is reportedly ready to negotiate an agreement that would foresee the release of all hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners and an end to the war.
The current draft includes the release of 10 hostages for a 45-day ceasefire, the Jerusalem Post reported on Thursday.
Israeli information indicates that 24 living hostages and 35 bodies of abductees are currently being held in the Gaza Strip.
300 pilots in Israel demand hostages take priority over war
Around one-third of all Israeli civilian pilots have signed a letter calling on the government to prioritize the release of hostages over the war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the Israeli broadcaster Channel 12 reported.
In the letter, approximately 300 pilots reportedly demanded an agreement to secure the release of those still held captive in the Gaza Strip, even if it means ending the fighting against Hamas.
The letter mentioned that every passing day endangers the lives of the hostages, the report said.
Among the signatories are reportedly pilots from Arkia Israeli Airlines, Israel’s second-largest airline, as well as from the airline Israir. However, pilots from El Al, the country’s largest airline, were not mentioned.
According to the newspaper Haaretz, hundreds of former soldiers simultaneously signed a similar letter.
Similar calls, criticizing Israel’s actions in the coastal area, have recently also come from within the army and from artists.
Six reported killed in northern Gaza
At least six people have been killed and others injured in an Israeli attack in northern Gaza, a spokesman for the Hamas-controlled Palestinian civil defence agency said on Thursday.
The spokesman accused Israeli forces of having bombarded a former school building being used to house refugees in Jabalia.
The school was formerly operated by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), which Israeli authorities accuse of harbouring Hamas operatives.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said the target was a Hamas command centre in the area which had planned attacks on Israeli civilians. It added that steps were taken ahead of the attack to protect the civilian population.
The IDF accused Hamas of abusing civilian infrastructure and using civilians as human shields. It did not detail casualties.
The IDF also said that the Israeli Air Force hit more than 110 targets over recent days.
The Hamas-controlled health authority in Gaza said 40 people were killed in the past 24 hours, bringing the death toll in the conflict to 51,065.
The war in Gaza broke out when Hamas and other militant Palestinian organizations launched a surprise attack from the Gaza Strip on October 7, 2023.
Read the full article here
