Hamas accepts ceasefire proposal of Egypt, Qatar

Hamas said on Monday that it had accepted a Gaza ceasefire proposal from Egypt and Qatar.

The militant group said in a statement that its chief, Ismail Haniyeh, had informed Qatar’s prime minister and Egypt’s intelligence chief of its acceptance of their proposal.

There were no immediate details over what the agreement entailed.

A Hamas delegation will visit Cairo soon to discuss ceasefire agreement and the next step, a Hamas official told Reuters.

The group agreed to the proposal, meeting several demands including ceasefire, reconstruction, return of those displaced, and a prisoner swap deal.

The ceasefire proposal is a three-phased agreement, with each phase consisting of 42 days, said Hamas’ Deputy Gaza Chief. Egyptian mediators said they would guarantee that war would not resume in Gaza, he added.

The second stage of the agreement entails a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, the group’s deputy chief in Gaza said. However, an Israeli military spokesperson said that the military is still operating in Gaza and will continue to do so.

An Israeli official said that the truce Hamas said it agreed to was a “softened” version of an Egyptian proposal. This included “far-reaching” conclusions that Israel could not accept.

“This would appear to be a ruse intended to make Israel look like the side refusing a deal,” said the Israeli official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.