Israel has witnessed significant progress following Hamas' revised response to a proposed hostage and ceasefire agreement delivered by Qatar and Egypt on Wednesday, according to a statement from the Israeli Mossad.
The updated response from Hamas has been described as constructive by two senior Israeli officials speaking to Axios, indicating a potential opening for more detailed negotiations aimed at reaching an agreement.
Axios previously reported that the Biden administration has introduced new amendments into the proposed deal, aiming to bridge remaining gaps and facilitate an accord. This effort aligns with an Israeli proposal endorsed by Israel's war cabinet and articulated by President Biden in a late May speech.
The U.S. initiative proposes a three-phase deal aimed at securing the release of the remaining 120 hostages held by Hamas and establishing "sustainable calm" in Gaza, following the outbreak of the war after the October 7th massacre.
The focus of the new revised plan presented by the U.S, and pushed by Qatari and Egyptian mediators for Hamas to accept, centres on Article 8 of the proposal. This article outlines negotiations between Israel and Hamas during the first phase of implementation, with discussions aimed at defining the conditions for achieving "sustainable calm" in Gaza during the second phase.
Hamas desires these negotiations to exclusively address the number and identities of Palestinian prisoners to be released from Israeli jails in exchange for each living Israeli soldier or male hostage held in Gaza. In contrast, Israel seeks the flexibility to raise issues including the demilitarization of Gaza during these talks.
According to senior Israeli officials, Hamas' latest response, delivered on Wednesday around noon local time, is being studied by Israel's negotiation team. They note that this response is markedly improved from Hamas' initial reply sent on June 12, potentially paving the way for agreement on key sticking points in Articles 8 and 14.
However, Israeli officials caution that while important progress has been achieved, significant challenges remain. Detailed negotiations, if initiated, are expected to be tough and could take several weeks to finalize, they added.
A potential deal in Gaza would mark a significant achievement for President Biden, who has been advocating for an end to the violence and faces domestic political pressures following critical assessments of his debate performance.
Next steps involve Israel's negotiation team engaging in discussions with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Yoav Gallant to formulate a policy regarding Hamas' response and to decide whether to proceed with detailed negotiations in Qatar or Egypt.