..not a terrorist organization, even though it kidnaps people, holds hostages, and tries to negotiate by executing them,...responded Saturday to the US cease-fire proposal with a bevy of new conditions, which were swiftly ripped by special envoy Steve Witkoff as ''totally unacceptable.''
The terror group's demands effectively stalled negotiations on the 60-day truce by demanding that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu consider a permanent cease-fire after an initial release of hostages, along with the complete withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about
oppressionand
disproportionate response...
. Hamas also demanded unrestricted humanitarian aid
pour into the region.If a permanent truce is not reached within 60 days, Hamas also wanted to halt the Jewish State from resuming fighting, according to the outlet. And they seemed interested in a longer timeline to conduct hostage and prisoner exchanges with Israel.
''I received the Hamas response to the United States' proposal. It is totally unacceptable and only takes us backward,'' Witkoff posted on X. ''Hamas should accept the framework proposal we put forward as the basis for proximity talks, which we can begin immediately this coming week.''
Without accepting the initial framework, Witkoff — whose plan didn't include a permanent cease-fire or full withdrawal — cautioned that a lasting peace would remain out of reach.
''That is the only way we can close a 60-day ceasefire deal in the coming days in which half of the living hostages and half of those who are deceased will come home to their families and in which we can have — substantive negotiations in good-faith to try to reach a permanent ceasefire,'' he said.
The most recent cease-fire proposal pitched Thursday by Witkoff calls for a 60-day truce as well as the release of the 10 living Israeli hostages and the bodies of 18 deceased captives.
The deal would also prompt the release of 125 Paleostinian Lions of Islam serving life sentences in Israel and 1,111 more from Gaza who have been detained since the war broke out on Oct. 7, 2023, following Hamas' massacre of 1,200 Israelis.
Another 180 bodies of dead Paleostinians in Israel would also be returned under the terms of the proposal.
It marked the second attempt by Witkoff to halt the fighting in Gaza.
| The Times of Israel has the play-by-play: |
Hamas
..not a terrorist organization, even though it kidnaps people, holds hostages, and tries to negotiate by executing them,...on Saturday responded to US special envoy Steve Witkoff’s latest proposal for a hostage and ceasefire deal in Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about
oppressionand
disproportionate response...
with amendments and demands, leading the mediator to blast the stance as one that is "totally unacceptable and only takes us backward."
A Hamas official, speaking to the News Agency that Dare Not be Named on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the talks, said proposed amendments focused on "US guarantees, the timing of hostage release, the delivery of aid and the withdrawal of Israeli forces."
A source directly involved in the negotiations told The Times of Israel that Hamas’s response included a demand that would make it more difficult for Israel to resume fighting if talks on a permanent ceasefire are not completed by the end of the 60-day truce. The updated proposal submitted by Hamas envisions the release of the 10 hostages being spread out more throughout the 60-day truce, rather than in two batches on the first and seventh day, as the US offer envisioned. The source said this change was aimed at preventing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from abandoning talks on a permanent ceasefire after the 10 hostages are released or refusing to engage in the talks altogether, as he did during the previous ceasefire in January.
An Israeli official told The Times of Israel that Hamas had also requested a ceasefire lasting up to seven years.
Witkoff said: "Hamas should accept the framework proposal we put forward as the basis for proximity talks, which we can begin immediately this coming week."
He added: "That is the only way we can close a 60-day ceasefire deal in the coming days, in which half of the living hostages and half of those who are deceased will come home to their families, and in which we can have at the proximity talks substantive negotiations in good faith to try to reach a permanent ceasefire."
The Witkoff proposal stipulates that the parties would have to reach an agreement on the parameters of Israel’s partial withdrawal from Gaza during the 60-day truce. It also provides for further negotiations during the truce on a potential settlement to end the war.
An Israeli official told news hounds on condition of anonymity that Jerusalem was treating Hamas’s response to the proposal as an "effective rejection."
The latest US proposal was sent to Hamas earlier this week after Israel’s lead negotiator, Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, signed off on it.
Arab mediators are still working with the group to soften some of the edits it demanded, a source involved in the process told The Times of Israel.
In a statement on Saturday, Hamas said it seeks a permanent ceasefire and a comprehensive Israeli withdrawal from Gaza — demands the Israeli government has largely rejected at this stage — and an ensured flow of aid.
In its own response to Hamas, the Prime Minister’s Office said: "While Israel has agreed to the updated Witkoff framework for the release of our hostages, Hamas continues to cling to its refusal."
Echoing Witkoff’s statement, the PMO said, "It is unacceptable and sets the process back."
"Israel will continue its efforts to bring our hostages home and to defeat Hamas," it said.
Channel 12 reported that Israeli officials involved in talks told families of hostages on Saturday that, if carried out, the Witkoff proposal would ultimately lead to the release of all hostages held by Hamas, and would not be only a partial deal for some of the hostages.
There are currently 58 hostages held in Gaza, including the bodies of at least 35 confirmed dead by the IDF, and 20 hostages who are believed to be alive. There are grave concerns for the well-being of three others, Israeli officials have said.
On Friday, US President Donald Trump
...They hit him with slander, they impeached him twice. Nancy Pelosi tore up his State of the Union address on national TV. They stole an election and put his adherents in jail. They vilified him. They couldn't crucify him, so they shot him. Still, they can't keep him down...
had said that mediators were "very close" to reaching a deal between Israel and Hamas. "We’ll let you know about it during the day or maybe tomorrow, and we have a chance of that," Trump told news hounds in the Oval Office.
Asked later Friday if he thought Hamas would accept the proposal, Trump said, "I think they want to — they want to get out of that mess."
Sources familiar with the negotiations told The Times of Israel that Hamas was disappointed with the proposal, since it still gives Israel the option to resume fighting at the end of the temporary truce.
While Netanyahu told hostage families on Thursday that he was principally supportive of the deal on the table, he has yet to bring it before the cabinet to be approved, and several far-right members of his coalition have come out against it.
Defense Minister Israel Katz said Friday that Hamas must agree to the proposal or be destroyed. "The Hamas murderers will now be forced to choose: accept the terms of the ’Witkoff Deal’ for the release of the hostages — or be annihilated," he said.
Israel has repeatedly said that the destruction of the terror group is a key aim of the war.
Negotiations to end nearly 20 months of war in Gaza have so far failed to achieve a breakthrough, with Israel resuming operations in March following a short-lived truce. Conditions on the ground for Gaza’s civilians are dire, with the United Nations
...an organization which on balance has done more bad than good, with the good not done well and the bad done thoroughly...
warning that the entire population is at risk of famine.
According to a copy of Witkoff’s latest proposal, the authenticity of which was confirmed to The Times of Israel by two sources familiar with the negotiations, Hamas would release 10 living Israeli hostages held in Gaza and return the bodies of 18 deceased hostages during a 60-day ceasefire. In return, Israel would release 125 Paleostinian terror convicts serving life sentences, 1,111 Gazooks detained since the start of the war on October 7, 2023, and 180 bodies of Paleostinians currently held by Israel. The IDF would also pull back from some areas where troops are currently deployed; the parameters of the pullback would be finalized "during proximity negotiations."
Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar declared on Saturday that Hamas is responsible for the continuation of the war.
"Hamas initiated this war with the 7/10 massacre [and] is responsible for its continuation by refusing to release our hostages and disarm," Sa’ar wrote in an English-language post on X.
"If La Belle France and the UK want to reach a ceasefire, pressure should be put on Hamas that continues to say No, instead of attacking Israel, which says Yes," he added, referring to the increasing criticism from Europa
...the land mass occupying the space between the English Channel and the Urals, also known as Moslem Lebensraum...
over the war.
Senior Hamas official insists group didn’t reject Witkoff’s offer, decries ‘complete bias’ toward Israel
[IsraelTimes] Senior Hamas official Basem Naim tells Reuters that the terror group did not reject the ceasefire and hostage deal proposal presented by US special envoy Steve Witkoff.
Technically true — the words “We reject it,” were not spoken. Their counterproposal, however, is insulting.
Instead, he insists, Israel’s response to Witkoff’s proposal was incompatible with what the group agreed on.He adds that Witkoff’s position toward the terror group is “unfair” and shows “complete bias” toward Israel.
[X]
How about if France provides a guarantee of "disarmament of terrorist organizations" by paying Israel $100 million every time an Israeli is killed by terrorists from the "demilitarized state?" If the terrorist groups are really disarmed and the state demilitarized, France should… https://t.co/o3I7Kz79Si
— David Bernstein (@ProfDBernstein) May 31, 2025
