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Israel has agreed to a cease-fire proposal put forward by Steve Witkoff, U.S. President Donald Trump’s envoy, which calls for a temporary truce during Ramadan and Passover, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office announced late Saturday.
Under the plan, half of the remaining hostages—both living and deceased—would be released on the first day. If negotiations lead to a permanent cease-fire, the remaining hostages would be freed by the deal’s conclusion.
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Steve Witkoff and Benjamin Netanyahu
(Photo: REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein/Pool Oliver CONTRERAS / AFP)
According to Netanyahu’s office, Witkoff proposed the framework after assessing that the gaps between Israel and Hamas remain too wide for an immediate resolution to the war and that additional time is needed for negotiations.
"While Hamas has repeatedly violated past agreements, Israel has not breached any terms," the statement said, adding that Israel retains the right to resume military operations after 42 days if it deems negotiations ineffective. "If Hamas changes its position, Israel will immediately engage in negotiations to finalize the Witkoff framework."
Despite Israel’s agreement to the proposal, an Israeli official said the country is "closer to resuming military action than to securing a cease-fire." The official stressed that no truce would proceed without further hostage releases.
Israel is expected to give negotiations a few more days before considering a return to combat operations, with Netanyahu’s government awaiting Witkoff’s arrival in the Middle East later in the week after a delay in his planned visit.
Meanwhile, the IDF has begun preparations for a potential return to fighting, increasing readiness along the Gaza border and deploying additional forces to strategic locations. The IDF is also preparing for a renewed ground offensive, with combat divisions training for urban warfare against Hamas’ remaining infrastructure, including tunnels, explosive-laden streets and fortified strongholds.
Military officials have cautioned the government that any renewed offensive would need to be conducted with constraints, given intelligence indicating that dozens of Israeli hostages remain in specific areas of Gaza. Both sides, according to analysts, have entered a tense standoff over who will make the next move—whether negotiations will resume or hostilities will reignite.
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Netanyahu convened an emergency security meeting Saturday night that lasted well into the night, attended by top military and intelligence officials, as well as key government ministers, including Aryeh Deri, Bezalel Smotrich, Ron Dermer, Israel Katz and Gideon Sa’ar. A senior Israeli official said, "Hamas is playing for time, but Israel has contingency plans ready."
As Phase One of the hostage deal concluded, 59 hostages remain in Gaza. Of them, 24 are classified as alive, with Israeli intelligence estimating that 22 are indeed still alive, while 35 are believed to be deceased.
On Saturday morning, Hamas announced it was rejecting an extension of Phase I "under the conditions proposed by Israel." Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem told Qatar’s Al-Araby network that "there is currently no negotiation regarding a second phase, and Israel bears full responsibility."
He accused Israel of seeking to recover hostages while maintaining the option to resume attacks on Gaza and of "evading a commitment to ending the war and fully withdrawing from the Strip."
Netanyahu held a rare Friday evening consultation following the return of Israel’s negotiating team from Cairo, where talks failed to progress due to Hamas’ insistence on an Israeli withdrawal from the Philadelphi Corridor as a condition for further negotiations.