Senior Israeli officials were informed Tuesday night that Hamas wants a cease-fire and hostage release deal, in light of the visit of Shin Bet head Ronen Bar and IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi to Egypt , and the assessment in Israel that a deal could be reached within a month. Israel, however, denies that there lists of hostages who will be released in the first phase of the deal have already been produced and passed from Hamas to Egypt in recent days, despite Arab reports.
"We're not there yet," said sources familiar with the details. In addition, there is also substantial disagreement over the number of hostages who will be released in the first round.
In Egypt, Bar and Levy met with their counterparts and discussed regional security issues against the backdrop of assessments that a deal could be reached to release the hostages "within a week or two." The meeting dealt, among other things, with the sensitive situation in the Middle East after the fall of the Assad regime in Syria.
In addition, they also discussed security issues between the countries, including the issue of the hostage deal and specifically the Philadelphi Corridor, although as far as is known this is not an official negotiating delegation. Senior Israeli and Egyptian officials have met from time to time and as needed several times since the start of the war in the Gaza Strip in order to discuss security issues.
According to the same reports about the lists that were transferred, such as one published in the Saudi Asharq Al-Awsat, the meeting between Halevi and Bar and their Egyptian counterparts included receiving a list of names of live hostages, some 30 in number. The newspaper quoted a "source familiar with the details of the deal" as saying that "the meaning of the visit is that we are closer to a cease-fire." The newspaper noted that acceptance of the Egyptian proposal might come by the end of the week, or at the latest by the middle of the month. According to the same source, the proposal under discussion talks about a cease-fire of up to 60 days, at a rate of two days for each Israeli hostage, while Hamas will keep the soldiers and "the most important hostages" for additional rounds.
A political source told Ynet Tuesday that progress has been made on the issue of negotiations for a hostage deal. "The starting point so far was that Hamas did not want a deal, and today it seems as if this has changed. Until two weeks ago, I thought Hamas did not want a deal, and today I tend to think that it has changed its mind," he said.
"The situation has changed," the source also claimed. "The conditions have changed. Hamas wanted many fronts and that's over. There are no fronts, so there is a chance of reaching a deal in the coming month."
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Israelis remember the victims of the Hamas massacre and the hostages still held in Gaza
(Photo: Mahmoud Illean / AP)
Former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant met Tuesday at the White House with Brett McGurk, the U.S. presidential envoy to the Middle East. "At the center of our conversation was the real possibility of a breakthrough on the issue of the release of the hostages in the near future. I emphasized to the presidential envoy that the coming days will be critical for the release of the kidnapped and that I view this mission as of supreme national and ethical importance," Gallant said.
"The current progress is made possible by the series of operational achievements that the State of Israel has achieved through its security forces in all sectors of the fighting - in Gaza, Lebanon and Iran, which has established the strength and supremacy of the State of Israel throughout the Middle East, and weakened the Shiite axis, to the point of the fall of the murderous Assad regime. Also in the continuation of my expected meetings in Washington, I will place the vital task facing us at the center of the discussion - to return the hostages to Israel."
Meanwhile, Minister Yoav Ben-Tzur of the Shas Party said that party chairman Aryeh Deri "is working in every way for the welfare of the families of the hostages, and in the confidential discussions he is pushing with all his might for a deal to return them, a deal that security officials support." He added: "The return of the hostages is our duty and our responsibility, and our desire is a quick deal and the release of everyone in one fell swoop."
A senior Egyptian official told Ynet and Yedioth Ahronoth Tuesday morning that the announcement of an arrangement that would lead to a cease-fire and a deal is "very close." A Hamas delegation led by senior Hamas official Khalil al-Hayya left Cairo on Sunday night, following discussions with the head of Egyptian intelligence, General Hassan Mahmoud Rashad, and his team. On Tuesday, it was reported that the delegation had handed over to the Egyptians a detailed list of Israeli hostages - sick and elderly, women and men - that Hamas is offering to release in the first phase. The Hamas delegation also handed over a detailed list of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli prisons that Hamas is demanding to be released as part of the new deal.
The Egyptian official clarified that an Israeli delegation is scheduled to leave for Cairo this week for a meeting at the intelligence headquarters, during which they will be given the lists of Palestinian hostages and prisoners. Hamas made it clear to Egypt that "there is a better chance than ever before of closing a deal," in exchange for the release of the prisoners and Israel's withdrawal from the Philadelphi Corridor and other areas in the Gaza Strip.
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Meanwhile, Jake Sullivan, the national security adviser to US President Joe Biden, met with the families of the American hostages Idan Alexander, Omar Neutra, Itay Chen, Sagui Dekel Chen, Keith Siegel, Gadi Haggai and Judy Weinstein Haggai. "
The families expressed their gratitude for the administration's continued involvement since October 7, and emphasized the need for close cooperation with President-elect Donald Trump's team in order to bring about the return of the hostages," it was reported. "Sullivan updated the families regarding the current negotiations, and assured them that the administration will continue to devote maximum efforts to the release of the hostages."