Gaza ceasefire: Hamas places proposals

The United States, Qatari and Egyptian mediators have prepared a diplomatic push to bridge differences between Israel and Hamas on a ceasefire plan for Gaza.

Hamas on Tuesday replied to a framework drawn up more than a week ago by US and Israeli spy chiefs at a meeting in Paris with the Egyptians and Qataris.

Hamas has proposed a ceasefire plan that would quiet the guns in Gaza for four-and-a-half months, during which all hostages would go free, Israel would withdraw its troops from the Gaza Strip and an agreement would be reached on an end to the war.

There was no immediate public response from Israel, which has said it will not pull its troops out of Gaza until Hamas is wiped out.

The Hamas counterproposal envisages three phases of a truce, lasting 45 days each. Militants would exchange remaining Israeli hostages captured on Oct. 7 for Palestinian prisoners. 

The reconstruction of Gaza would begin, Israeli forces would withdraw completely, and bodies and remains would be exchanged.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived overnight in Israel after meeting the leaders of mediators Qatar and Egypt.

A source close to the negotiations said the Hamas counterproposal did not require a guarantee of a permanent ceasefire at the outset, but an end to the war would have to be agreed during the truce before the final hostages were freed.