Hamas has seemingly turned down a deal that would have established a ceasefire and freed approximately a dozen hostages held in Gaza for the past 556 days.
While the terrorist group has not formally announced its rejection of Israel’s ceasefire proposal, Hamas leader Abu Zuhri told reporters on Tuesday that giving up weapons is completely unacceptable and not open for discussion.
The exact details of the proposal could not be independently verified, but sources indicated it involved a 45-day ceasefire and the delivery of humanitarian aid – which has been halted since March 2 – in exchange for 11 hostages and Hamas’s disarmament.
The Israeli government believes that 24 of the 59 hostages remaining in Gaza are alive, including American Israeli , whose second proof-of-life video was released by Hamas on Saturday, the day before Passover.
However, on Tuesday, Hamas claimed to have lost contact with the soldiers guarding Alexander, accusing Israeli forces of targeting his location, though no evidence was provided.
Hamas has previously announced either the death of or loss of contact with hostages held in various locations within Gaza.
Confirmation of these claims, posted on Telegram by Abu Obeida, spokesperson for Hamas’ Al-Qassam Brigades, from Israeli authorities or Alexander’s family, was not immediately available.
The failure of the proposal does not appear to have surprised mediators, who have remained silent and have not answered questions.
Some reports suggest that mediators were not optimistic about the Israeli ceasefire proposal gaining traction, despite Israel’s continued advances in Gaza, because it did not include any withdrawal terms and demanded that Hamas surrender its weapons.
Israel frustrated mediators last month when it resumed military operations in Gaza after the end of the initial ceasefire and the failure to finalize a deal intended to release the remaining hostages.
Israel expanded its control in Gaza over the weekend after reports earlier this month indicated it had seized more than half of the Palestinian territory, as ceasefire negotiations remained deadlocked.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz stated on Sunday that the IDF had captured territory in the southern Gaza Strip, including the Philadelphia Corridor along the Egyptian border, and the Morag axis, a new corridor announced by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu earlier this month. This corridor cuts off the city of Rafah and southern Gaza from Khan Younis.
Katz said the area has become a buffer zone controlled by the IDF.
“The area of the northern border in Gaza is also deepening and expanding as part of the security zone and the protection of Israeli settlement,” he said in a . “Hundreds of thousands of residents have already evacuated from the combat zones and tens of percent of Gaza’s territory has become part of Israel’s security zones.
“The main goal is to exert heavy pressure on Hamas in favor of returning to the outline of releasing the abductees,” Katz continued. “Gaza will become smaller and more isolated, and more and more of its residents will be forced to evacuate the combat zones.”