On Sunday evening, on the eve of the anniversary of the October 7 Hamas massacre, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened an unusual meeting to address the stalemate in negotiations for the release of hostages held in Gaza for a full year.
The Prime Minister's Office reported that the meeting included security chiefs, hostages and missing persons coordinator Gal Hirsch, and several government ministers.
During the meeting, security officials presented an intelligence assessment previously disclosed by Netanyahu, indicating that about half of the 101 hostages held by Hamas are alive, but their condition is dire.
"The captors have made their conditions much worse. There are clear instructions for the captors that if they sense danger and that the IDF is approaching, they are to execute the hostages, as happened in Tel Sultan (in Rafah) with the six hostages who were murdered." Officials in the meeting claimed: "As time passes, there is less and less intelligence on the hostages, which is very concerning."
Sources familiar with the details added that no discussion on the hostages had taken place for an entire month, and Sunday evening's meeting was the first held in the last month. They suggested Netanyahu convened the meeting on the eve of the October 7 massacre anniversary "to fulfill an obligation" and to avoid accusations of neglect. According to them, mediators are distancing themselves from the Israeli position, and Qatar is leaning more toward Hamas. "The U.S. just wants to avoid escalation and lives in a fantasy that everything can be settled with Iran, the north and Gaza by resolving everything together," a mediator said.
Negotiations for a deal are at an impasse. There is no progress. Sinwar is entrenched.
Knowledgeable sources also stated that the Israeli-American argument that they do not know the whereabouts of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, and thus cannot make a deal, is inaccurate, as discussions can still occur with senior Hamas figures abroad. "There is an impression that no one is dealing with this, not even the mediators, and everyone has given up. The feeling is that it is no longer a priority, overshadowed by the fear of regional war," a source said.
Despite the significant pessimism from these sources, Israel has been considering new ideas regarding the deal in recent weeks, and mediators are also exploring different ideas with Hamas, but everything remains stalled, and Sinwar has not responded. Meanwhile, there are questions about whether Sinwar is even alive or if he is out of contact for another reason.
"Negotiations for a deal are at an impasse. There is no progress. Sinwar is entrenched," a source familiar with the details said Sunday evening. "We are waiting for the impact from the north and, in the meantime, we are considering ideas about what can be done," a source added, referring to the current battles in the ground operation in southern Lebanon. Netanyahu himself has publicly assessed that a severe blow to Hezbollah would also help increase pressure on Sinwar to reach a deal.
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The tunnel where the six slain hostages were forced to stay
(Photo: Israeli Army/ REUTERS )
Meanwhile, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant met with hostage families at Hostage Square in Tel Aviv, ahead of the Salon Otef event marking the anniversary of their loved ones' abductions.
"The families expressed to the minister the deep pain they are experiencing in these difficult days and asked him to remind all Cabinet ministers and the government that the war's ultimate goal is the return of the 101 hostages," the Hostages and Missing Families Forum reported. However, Gallant noted the Cabinet has not discussed the hostage issue for two weeks.
Protest calling for release of hostages on Saturday in Caesarea
(Video: Yoshvei Haaretz)
"In addition, the families expressed grave concern over the IDF's return to fighting in the northern Gaza Strip as, unfortunately, we have seen that military pressure kills hostages. The Defense Minister stated that the issue of the hostages' presence in the area is a top priority for the IDF, and the entire security system is committed to returning all the hostages home," the headquarters reported.