After months of deadlock, Israel has softened some of its demands in negotiations over a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of hostages held there.
Israel plans to allow displaced Palestinian civilians to return to northern Gaza as part of its latest proposal, two Israeli officials said, but it would significantly change the issue that has stalled negotiations. This is a major change in policy.
Israel has been demanding for weeks to be allowed to impose significant restrictions on Palestinians returning to the north, fearing that Hamas would use the mass return to strengthen itself. Officials said Israel had agreed to the en masse return of Palestinian civilians in the first phase of the deal, an explanation confirmed by a non-Israeli official familiar with the talks.
One Israeli official said there would be no tests or restrictions on people returning to the north, while another said there would be few restrictions, without providing further details. The officials provided details of the proposal on condition of anonymity.
It is not clear whether Hamas will accept the latest Israeli offer, which is part of negotiations between the two countries indirectly through Egyptian and Qatari intermediaries. As of Wednesday afternoon, the group had not issued a formal response.
Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken, who visited Israel on Wednesday, focused on ceasefire negotiations. “We have proposals on the table and, as we have said, there can be no delays or excuses,” Blinken said before his meeting with President Isaac Herzog. He then held a nearly three-hour meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to discuss the talks and other issues.
Hamas has long demanded that any deal include a permanent end to the war, which has forced most of the Gaza Strip's more than 2 million residents to flee their homes. One Israeli official said the Israeli proposal does not include language that explicitly refers to a cessation of fighting.
At stake in the negotiations is Israel's threat to invade Rafah, Gaza's southernmost city, where about 1 million civilians have taken refuge, along with what it claims are thousands of Hamas fighters. But even as it vows to pursue plans for a ground invasion despite pleas from world leaders and humanitarian groups, it has signaled it will make some concessions in negotiations to end the fighting and release the hostages.
On Monday, the New York Times reported that Israel, as part of its offer, had reduced the number of hostages that Hamas would have to release in the early stages of the deal. After months of insisting on the release of 40 hostages, the Israeli government announced it would agree to 33 in a new proposal.
The change was prompted in part by the fact that Israel now believes some of the 40 people died in captivity, one of the officials said.
As details of Israel's latest proposal emerge, Prime Minister Netanyahu is under increasing pressure from his right-wing coalition partners to reject compromise. A withdrawal from the government over the deal could send Israel to early elections, threatening Mr. Netanyahu's political future.
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, a hardline member of the coalition, said if Mr. Netanyahu immediately abandoned the invasion of Rafah, the government under his leadership would have no “right to exist.”
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday that an invasion of Rafah would take place, although he did not specify the timing.
“The idea of stopping the war before all of its goals have been achieved is out of the question,” he said in a meeting with the families of the hostages, according to a statement from his office. “We will enter Rafah and eliminate the Hamas battalions that are there to achieve complete victory, with or without an agreement.”
If Israel and Hamas reach an agreement, it would be the first ceasefire since late November, when a brief cessation of fighting allowed the release of more than 100 hostages and 240 Palestinian prisoners.
Hamas and its allies captured about 240 Israelis and foreigners in the October 7 attack, which prompted Israel to go to war in Gaza. More than 130 hostages are believed to be still being held in Gaza, and some are believed to have died.
Aaron Boxerman contributed reporting.
— Adam Rasgon reports from Jerusalem