The ceasefire plan, which has been approved by Israeli officials, won a cool initial reaction Thursday from the militant group
US negotiators have not publicised the terms of the proposal. But a Hamas official and an Egyptian official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive talks, said Thursday that it called for a 60-day pause in fighting, guarantees of serious negotiations leading to a long-term truce and assurances that Israel will not resume hostilities after the release of hostages, as it did in March
In a terse statement issued Friday, Hamas said it is holding consultations with Palestinian factions over the proposal it had received from US envoy Steve Witkoff
While changes may have been made to the proposal, the version confirmed earlier called for Israeli forces to pull back to the positions they held before it ended the last ceasefire
Hamas would release 10 living hostages and a number of bodies during the 60-day pause in exchange for more than 1,100 Palestinians imprisoned by Israel, including 100 serving long sentences after being convicted of deadly attacks
Each day, hundreds of trucks carrying food and humanitarian aid would be allowed to enter Gaza, where experts say a nearly three-month Israeli blockade, slightly eased in recent days, has pushed the population to the brink of famine
"Negotiations are ongoing on the current proposal," Qatar's ambassador to the United Nations, Alya Ahmed Saif Al-Thani said Friday, referring to talks between her country, the United States and Egypt
On Thursday, a top Hamas official, Bassem Naim, said the US proposal "does not respond to any of our people's demands, foremost among which is stopping the war and famine"
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