Israel’s military said Wednesday its troops killed dozens of Palestinian terrorists in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis over the previous 24 hours.
Soldiers also located large quantities of weapons and uncovered more tunnel shafts in the area, the military said in a statement.
This from newsmax.com.
Hamas responded to the latest hostage deal proposal with Israel after more than a week of deliberations.
Channel 13 TV reported Wednesday:
A senior Israeli official has said some demands made by Hamas for a hostage deal cannot be met.
[But] Israeli authorities [will] debate whether to reject Hamas’ proposal outright or ask for alternate conditions.
The PMO stated:
Hamas’ reply has been conveyed by the Qatari mediator to the Mossad. Its details are being thoroughly evaluated by the officials involved in the negotiations.
Hamas also published a statement Tuesday, saying:
[It] dealt with the proposal in a positive spirit [while striving to negotiate] a comprehensive and complete ceasefire, ending the aggression against our people, ensuring relief, shelter, and reconstruction, lifting the siege on the Gaza Strip, and achieving a prisoner swap.
Axios reported:
Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani, one of the primary mediators in the negotiations, spoke with Israeli Mossad Director David Barnea by phone before sending him the document with the terror organization’s response.
While Israel has yet to issue an official statement regarding Hamas’ response, in the past, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected the idea of stopping to the war before achieving complete victory.
According to Axios, an Israeli official said it:
[Had] some positive aspects and some negative aspects [and could serve as a basis for further discussions].
Biden said:
[While] there is some movement [on the negotiations], Hamas’ response seems to be a little over the top.
Further:
We are not sure where it is going and we continue to negotiate.
Arabic al-Akhbar newspaper published a report about Hamas’ response, which included detailed comments and demands on every point in the proposal, according to KAN News Palestinian Affairs Correspondent Nurit Yohanan.
Among the demands was a full stop to Israel’s military operations, including airborne military operations. In addition, Hamas is demanding the release of 1,500 convicted prisoners, including 500 murder convicts; a massive increase in humanitarian aid; the restoration of water and electricity transport to the Gaza Strip; and the return of all hostages to Israel.
Senior Hamas official Ghazi Hamad told Reuters:
Hamas’ goal in the negotiations is the release of the largest possible number of terrorists from Israeli prisons
Further:
Netanyahu is trying to make everyone believe that he has or will achieve victory to preserve his coalition government.
Qatar’s prime minister and U.S. State Secretary Antony Blinken both reacted to Hamas’ response during a joint press conference Tuesday.
al-Thani said:
We are optimistic and we delivered the response to Israel. … We hope to reach a deal as soon as possible.
Blinken added:
[An agreement] is possible and essential.
He stressed:
[T]he best path forward towards calm is through a hostage deal.
Hamad told Reuters that the terror group is seeking the release of the largest number possible of Palestinians imprisoned by Israel.
Final thought: Hostages must be returned, yes, but think this through, Israel. We all see a repeat of October 7 coming eventually.
