[IsraelTimes] Hostage talks between Israel and Hamas remain at an impasse, two sources familiar with the negotiations tell The Times of Israel, after some of the mediators expressed optimism last week that Hamas would agree to soften its response to US special envoy Steve Witkoff’s hostage deal proposal.
Witkoff told hostage families he met with in Washington last week that he was optimistic about the chances for a breakthrough before the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha, which began on Friday, according to a source present in the meeting. Even if such a breakthrough had been reached, though, the sides still need to hold a round of proximity talks to close final details, such as the exact parameters of Israel’s partial military withdrawal.
But Hamas is standing by its demand for clearer wording that prevents Israel from resuming the war if terms on a permanent ceasefire are not reached during the 60-day truce and hostage release deal that Witkoff has proposed, an Arab official from one of the mediating countries says.
The proposal crafted by Witkoff leaves open a window for Israel to resume fighting if talks on a permanent ceasefire do not bear fruit within 60 days.
Witkoff has been urging mediators to lean on Hamas to soften its demands, insisting that once a deal is reached on a temporary truce, the US will make sure that the ceasefire is made permanent, the Arab official says.
However, Hamas does not want to trust Witkoff’s word alone, pointing to Israel’s decision to resume the war in March, rather than hold talks on a permanent ceasefire, as a January ceasefire had stipulated, the Arab official says.
The Arab official maintains that the US to date has mistakenly accepted Israel’s aversion to a temporary ceasefire, arguing that Jerusalem needed to be pressured by Washington to change course.
“If Israel agreed to a permanent ceasefire, [it] could get all of the hostages back at once,” the Arab official says. “Instead [it’s] trying to fight until the last Hamas fighter, and this will never end.”
Asked whether pressure needed to also be placed on Hamas, the Arab official insisted that the mediators have been leaning on the terror group and that it has resulted in its willingness to accept a temporary framework.
But given the wording, Hamas is seeking to block Israel from resuming the war, the temporary truce would effectively be a permanent one, the Arab official acknowledges.
Still, a second source familiar says that mediators are continuing to push Hamas to soften the response it issued to Witkoff’s proposal late last month, which the US envoy called “unacceptable.”
Witkoff has called on Hamas to accept his proposal, so that proximity talks on final gaps can commence.
If enough progress is made in moving Hamas, Witkoff may be dispatched to the region to finalize an agreement, the second source says, adding that mediators don’t want the US envoy to make the trip unless they’re confident a deal can be closed. 
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