Hamas has accepted a new cease-fire proposal for Gaza put forward by Qatar and Egypt that would see the release of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners, two diplomats familiar with the negotiations and an Egyptian official said on Monday.
It was unclear whether Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel would accept the proposal, which came as Qatar and Egypt were intensifying their mediation efforts ahead of a possible Israeli ground invasion into Gaza City.
The plan would also require Israel to redeploy its forces in Gaza, and it would allow enough humanitarian aid to enter the territory to meet the needs of Palestinians, two of the officials said.
The latest terms are similar to those that Israel had previously accepted and they include both a temporary cease-fire and a path to an agreement to end the war, according to the two diplomats and the Egyptian official.
In a statement, Hamas said that it and other Palestinian groups had agreed to a proposal presented by Egyptian and Qatari mediators on Sunday.
Israel has agreed in the past to the release of half of the hostages believed to be alive in Gaza in exchange for Palestinian prisoners as part of an initial cease-fire, and to the release of the remaining hostages as part of a comprehensive follow-up deal.
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The post Hamas Accepts New Gaza Cease-Fire Proposal, Officials Say appeared first on New York Times.
