JC Israel Briefing Day 557: A new ceasefire proposal – but little relief for hostage families

Israeli officials said the handover may be a step towards calm but warned that Hezbollah fighters are still violating the ceasefire. In related news, a reservist was seriously wounded after troops mistakenly entered an Israeli minefield near the Lebanon border.

In Gaza, Hamas is reportedly considering a proposal to release 10 hostages in exchange for a temporary ceasefire. The terror group is set to send representatives to Qatar in the coming days to continue indirect talks. Hamas is believed to be pushing for an agreement to involve Israel ending the war, while Jerusalem is opposed to this. Another apparent sticking point is that Hamas is reportedly rejecting a clause that would force it to disarm.

The current proposal would also see humanitarian aid resume in Gaza and Israeli forces halt operations in newly re-entered areas. It has sparked fury among hostage families, who say the government has no right to choose which captives return and which remain underground.

Einav Zangauker, whose son Matan remains in captivity, went so far as to liken this to the Holocaust-era selections which saw Jews select other Jews for death by the Nazis. After Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the parents of hostage Eitan Mor about the proposal, the Tikva Forum, which Eitan’s father helps to run, issued a similar statement also invoking the reference of the World War Two selections, saying: “All the hostages need to be released in one phase… without selektzia between them.”

Netanyahu has disputed the notion that Israel would be selecting who to save, insisting yesterday that Jerusalem has no role in choosing which hostages are prioritised and only Hamas has that power.

The Hostages and Missing Families Forum also issued a statement rejecting any partial release, declaring: “We urge the obvious, possible, and appropriate solution: end the war and return all the hostages, the living and the dead, immediately.”

Likewise, more than 250 former Mossad officials – including three ex-directors – have signed a letter urging a full hostage deal, even if it means ending the war.

“The continuation of the fighting endangers the lives of the hostages and our soldiers,” they wrote. “Make brave decisions and act responsibly.” Some 200 reservist doctors made similar demands in their own letter, echoing two letters last week from air force and navy reservists respectively.

And protests for hostage releases have swelled after Hamas released a video of American-Israeli soldier Edan Alexander. In the footage, he appeared injured, shackled, and shaken. “I was told I was to be released weeks ago,” he said, addressing Israel’s leadership: “You refused and left me here.” Speaking to Israeli leaders and Donald Trump, he warned: “Time is really running out.” Hamas is known to use videos as psychological warfare.

However, Alexander’s parents allowed the video to be published, voicing dismay that their son has been “left alone in the tunnels, alone in the hands of the enemy.” At a rally in Jerusalem, his aunt Iris Schwartz said that, while the clip represented a sign of life, “there was no celebration. There was only his wail.” She accused the government of putting its political survival above the lives of its citizens.

The IDF was on high alert throughout the start of Passover, and on Seder Night forces intercepted a rocket fired from Gaza. Sirens sounded across southern Israel. Meanwhile, several hundred Israelis skipped the celebrations at home and instead held a public Seder at Hostages Square in Tel Aviv, contrasting the freedom celebrated at the meal with the captivity of the hostages.

Meanwhile, Donald Trump said yesterday the US is prepared for a strike against Iran if diplomacy fails. “I will solve the Iran problem,” he told reporters in the Oval Office, repeating threats to take harsh action if talks fail. Trump recently made it clear that if a strike is authorised, he will expect Israel to take the lead.

But, while the military option is closely coordinated with Israel, there are indications that the diplomatic option being discussed is not to Israel’s liking. American and Iranian officials met in Oman for direct nuclear talks. Both sides called the meeting “constructive,” and a second round of talks is planned.

Israel wants the talks to produce a deal that dismantles Iran’s nuclear programme, but US special envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff indicated in an interview yesterday that US-Iran talks are focusing on capping Iran’s nuclear enrichment, not stopping it altogether.

Elsewhere, in the West Bank, a police officer was lightly injured in a car-ramming in the town of ad-Dhahiriya yesterday. The suspect refused to stop and struck the officer while fleeing. Security forces are still pursuing the driver.

But there is a new scandal back in Israel. A Shin Bet reservist has been arrested on suspicion of leaking information to a politician from Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party, and to two journalists.

The suspect, who returned to service after 7 October, is accused of passing classified material to Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chikli and journalists Amit Segal and Shirith Avitan. Investigators say the leaks occurred on several occasions and involved internal Shin Bet documents.

Lawyers for the suspect say he acted out of conscience because he believed that the Shin Bet was trying to shift blame for the 7 October failures and wanted to expose this attempt. Lawyers insisted that none of the material endangered security.

One of the alleged leaks consisted of information revealing that Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar ordered agents to probe whether the far-right ideology of Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir was making headway in state institutions. The Prime Minister’s Office later claimed Bar had acted behind the government’s back. This story was reported by Segal on Channel 12.

Segal has reacted scathingly to the new scandal, suggesting that his story embarrassed the Shin Bet chief, therefore he went after the source. Bar is currently locked in a legal battle with the government over the Prime Minister’s attempt to dismiss him from.

Finally, Israel is in the thick of direct talks with Turkey. The two countries, former allies, have intense friction between them, and Israel is alarmed at what seems to be Turkey’s plan to become more entrenched in Syria since the regime there fell a few months ago. Amid talks, an Israeli official has said Israel is willing to let Turkey keep a limited military presence—as long as it does not interfere with Israeli operations.

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