The Israeli negotiating team have been in Qatar for over a week, participating in intensive negotiations aimed at finalising a deal that could bring some hostages home.
According to Al-Ghad, an Egyptian news outlet, Israel has asked for the release of 11 Israeli men — whom Hamas classifies as soldiers — as part of the first phase of a potential exchange.
These individuals would join other hostages, including children, female soldiers and elderly or sick captives, in being freed in exchange for 250 Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli prisons.
Israeli officials have also expressed concern that Hamas may use these prisoners as leverage to secure the release of additional non-categorised prisoners, complicating the already delicate negotiations.
The hostage crisis began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas-led terrorists abducted 251 people during a brutal assault on southern Israel.
While 96 hostages are still believed to be in Gaza, 34 have been confirmed by the Israeli Defence Forces as having died or been killed in the tunnels of Gaza.
Most of those still in captivity are civilians, including families abducted from their homes and attendees of a music festival in the Negev.
Despite a report from BBC on Sunday that negotiations are “90 per cent completed”, with discussions focusing on control over the Gaza-Egypt border and potential humanitarian aid corridors, Israeli officials have expressed caution about the chances of a quick resolution.
A senior Palestinian official involved in the talks confirmed that discussions also include the potential creation of a buffer zone along Gaza’s border with Israel, but emphasised that key issues still need to be resolved. "Once these issues are resolved, a potential ceasefire could begin within days," the official said.
Inside Israel, political tension in Israel surrounding the hostage negotiations has only intensified,
Opposition leader Benny Gantz, a former war cabinet minister and leader of the National Unity party, sharply criticised Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday, accusing him of “sabotaging” the hostage talks.
In a statement to the press, Gantz said Netanyahu's recent comments to The Wall Street Journal — in which the prime minister reiterated that Israel would not agree to end the war before dismantling Hamas — were undermining efforts to reach a deal.
"Netanyahu is once again running to the foreign media and talking," Gantz said, predicting that "once again a ‘political figure will be briefing [reporters] at the end of the week”.
Netanyahu responded by dismissing Gantz’s criticism, telling reporters that the former war minister "cannot preach" on matters of national security.
