Israel proposes 40-day Gaza ceasefire deal to secure release of 11 hostages, return of 16 bodies: report
Israel submitted a new proposal on Monday for a ceasefire in Gaza, local media reported.
The Haaretz daily, citing a senior Israeli official, said Israel had asked the Palestinian militant group Hamas through mediators in Egypt and Qatar for the release of 11 living hostages and the return of 16 bodies, in addition to providing information on the remaining captives in Gaza, in return for a 40-day suspension of hostilities.
In addition to the ceasefire, Israel would release an unspecified number of Palestinian prisoners from its jails, the newspaper said.
The official said that on the fifth day of the deal, Israel would request information from Hamas regarding the rest of the captives in its custody.
Under the Israeli proposal, Tel Aviv would ask Hamas to release the bodies of 16 Israeli hostages on the 10th day of the agreement — around half the total number of remains of Israeli hostages believed to be held by Hamas in Gaza.
No comments have been issued by Israel, Hamas or the mediators on the report.
Israeli estimates indicate that 59 hostages remain in Gaza, including 24 who are alive.
Meanwhile, Israel is holding more than 9,500 Palestinian captives under conditions that human rights organisations describe as harsh, citing reports of torture, mistreatment and medical neglect, which have resulted in fatalities.
Israel began a surprise aerial campaign on the Gaza Strip on March 18 and has killed more than 1,000 people and injured more than 2,000 others since then, shattering a January ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement.
More than 50,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza in Israel’s military onslaught since October 2023, most of them women and children.
The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants last November for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.