Israeli Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi affirmed that it has become urgent to reach an agreement with Hamas that leads to the release of Israeli prisoners held by Palestinian factions in Gaza. He added, "The Israeli army is applying military pressure on Hamas, including through the operation in Rafah, but this must be linked to a political process for the release of the prisoners," according to the Hebrew news site "Walla News" from informed sources.
Additionally, all heads and leaders of Israeli security agencies, including the negotiation team, expressed a unified stance during a cabinet meeting, emphasizing the "necessity of urgent action to reach an agreement for the release of prisoners, even if that comes at the cost of being ready to discuss the latest proposal that Hamas has accepted and to make further concessions."
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the ministers in the war cabinet decided to expand the powers of the negotiating delegation. An Israeli official stated, "It is not certain that it will be possible to achieve a breakthrough in the talks regarding the prisoner deal."
For its part, the newspaper "Haaretz" reported from informed sources that "the decisions made by the war cabinet are not enough to bridge the gap with Hamas and reach an agreement." It continued, "The negotiating delegation received approval to show some flexibility based on an Israeli proposal."
