As negotiations for a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas approach a decisive moment, the toll of the conflict continues to grow.
Today, the Israeli military reported five soldiers were killed in Beit Hanoun, northern Gaza, and eight injured from an ammunition explosion, one of the deadliest incidents in recent operations. On Sunday, another four soldiers were killed in Gaza. Meanwhile, Hamas has fired 20 rockets at Israel over the past two weeks, highlighting its continued ability to launch attacks after 15 months of war.
Negotiations involving the U.S., Qatar and Egypt are reportedly close to an agreement. The draft deal would secure the release of 33 hostages out of 98 – children, women, female soldiers, men over the age of 50 and humanitarian cases – in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, including high-profile detainees. This phase is expected to last 42 days.
According to an Israeli official, most of the 33 hostages who were abducted by Hamas from Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, are still alive. Humanitarian aid will be delivered to the Gaza Strip during this phase. Israel will reportedly release 50 prisoners for every female hostage and 30 children and women for every hostage.
The deal would also include a significant Israeli concession allowing 1 million displaced Palestinians to return to northern Gaza, a move security experts warn could enable Hamas to regroup.
‘The pace at which Hamas is rebuilding itself is higher than the pace that the IDF is eradicating them,’ retired IDF Brig. Gen. Amir Avivi told the Wall Street Journal on Monday.
Avivi also told Israeli radio that the deal has to include all the hostages, but there is only one Hamas demand that can’t be agreed to: ‘ending the war.’ He said as long as ending the war is not part of the deal, then ‘hard concessions’ can be made.
During his farewell foreign policy address at the State Department on Monday, President Biden said, ‘We’re on the brink of a proposal laid down months ago finally coming to fruition. We’re pressing hard to close this – free the hostages, halt the fighting, secure Israel and ensure humanitarian aid to Gaza. Palestinians deserve peace, Israel deserves peace, and we are working urgently to close this deal as we address the challenges.’
National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan emphasized the urgency in a statement, ‘We have coordinated very closely with the incoming administration to present a united message to all the parties, which says it is in the American national security interest…to get this deal done as fast as possible. And now we think those details are on the brink of being fully hammered out, and the parties are right on the cusp of being able to close this deal. Whether or not we go from where we are now to actually closing it, the hours and days ahead will tell.’
Biden and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu discussed the proposed cease-fire over the phone on Sunday, reflecting the high-level coordination between the U.S. and Israel. U.S. envoy Brett McGurk has been stationed in Qatar working nonstop to finalize the agreement.
The Israeli military has reported killing approximately 17,000 Hamas terrorists and detaining thousands more since the war began. Before the conflict, Hamas maintained a force of 30,000 terrorists organized into 24 battalions. While the IDF claims to have dismantled much of this structure, Hamas, which still controls large parts of Gaza, has not disclosed its losses or new recruitment figures. The Hamas-run Ministry of Health claims some 46,000 Gazans have been killed so far in the war.
The cease-fire proposal has sparked fierce debate within Israel’s government. Most coalition members, including Netanyahu, support the deal, viewing it as a critical step toward the hostages’ release. However, some coalition members to Netanyahu’s right strongly oppose the deal, citing security risks and fears that Hamas will use the pause to rebuild.