A proposal to get out of the deadlock and reach a cease-fire agreement will be on the table this week in a summit summoned by Qatar, Egypt and the United States and Israel and Hamas will have to respond.
The mediators believe Sinwar wants a break in the war but in Israel, security officials believe Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will again prevent the deal. They say Netanyahu has become addicted to the war and will not agree to end it before Sinwar is dead.
The summit is seen as a final opportunity to reach a cease-fire, not only in Gaza, and the path to preventing a regional war. Senior American officials will flood the area during the week as they attempt to solve outstanding issues ahead of the summit on Thursday.
Whatever will remain outstanding will be presented as the Mediators' last-ditch effort.
The mediators are mostly tired of Netanyahu. They understand his political limitations, but all believe he is fooling them and does not really want to reach a deal. They say he is purposefully delaying Israel's response, especially on control of the Gaza-Egypt border the Philadelphi Corridor. They consider Israel's targeted killings of senior members of Hamas and Hezbollah, as a danger to regional stability.
The mediators were so discouraged at Israel's response brought by Mossad Chief David Barnea earlier this month, that they did not even bother to present it to Hamas.
They are also tired of Sinwar and his push for the ultimate Jihad, but believe that now, he seeks a deal and believe he is showing signs of distress. He is shocked at the world's indifference, according to intelligence received in Israel. The days when the situation in Gaza was enraging the West, are over.
The bombing of the school in Gaza on Saturday, where some 100 people were reported killed, dozens of Hamas operatives among them, was condemned around the world. The horrific images were broadly broadcast but did not elicit the same level of response as past attacks had had.
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Aftermath of IDF bombing of a school in Gaza on Saturday
(Photo: Abed Sabah / Reuters)
Allies of Netanyahu say he is ready to make a deal. They say he knows that an agreement to the terms of a cease-fire will end his coalition but has come to terms with that. They believe it will also serve his political interests if some of the hostages are freed and his war on Gaza can be resumed. If there is a deal, his far-right coalition partners, Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Gvir may not topple the government.
This is the moment of truth for Netanyahu but first of all for the hostages still held by Hamas in Gaza.