As the war in the Gaza Strip enters its ninth month, with the number of Palestinian civilian deaths rising to over 37,000 and international efforts for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas stagnating, an Israeli official has stated that there will be no end to the war without an agreement. The official, whose name was not disclosed, conveyed to Hamas through intermediaries that the war "will only end with an agreement."
He added, "There is no end to the war without an agreement, not with a prior commitment, because Hamas has previously violated the agreements it agreed to," according to Israeli Channel 12. Another Israeli official noted on Sunday that Hamas's response to U.S. President Joe Biden's proposal for a ceasefire in the region was negative, while Hamas confirmed that its response was positive, with only minor modifications to the proposal that was publicly presented more than two weeks ago during a speech by Biden.
Last week, Arabic/Al-Hadath sources revealed that Hamas conditioned a complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from all of Gaza, while Israel insisted on withdrawing only from populated areas. Additionally, Hamas demanded a permanent ceasefire, whereas Israel discussed a conditional or time-limited truce. It is worth mentioning that the proposal outlined by Biden included three phases for a ceasefire in Gaza and a prisoner exchange between the parties. In the first phase, both sides, Hamas and Israel, commit to an immediate and complete ceasefire, with the release of some female and elderly prisoners and the return of the remains of others.
