40 hostages for 900 Palestinians
New US proposal aims to enable a ceasefire in Gaza
April 9, 2024, 2:38 a.m
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The war in Gaza is still in full swing and a ceasefire is not yet in sight. CIA Director Burns wants to make this possible with a compromise proposal. Above all, this provides for a large barter trade.
According to media reports, the USA wants to make the indirect negotiations on a ceasefire a success with a new compromise proposal. As the Wall Street Journal reported, citing Arab mediators, the proposal presented by CIA Director William Burns in Cairo envisages the Islamist Hamas taking 40 of the more than 100 hostages held in the Gaza Strip in exchange for 900 as part of a six-week ceasefire releases Palestinian prisoners – including 100 who were sentenced to life in prison for murdering Israelis.
The news portal Axios also reported on Burns’ new proposal, which Israeli officials said was based on conditions discussed in previous negotiations. The new proposal requires compromises from both parties to the conflict. Egyptian and Qatari mediators expect Hamas and Israel to respond to the new proposal by Tuesday evening, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Accordingly, Hamas would have to make concessions regarding the number and identity of the hostages to be released. Israel, in turn, would have to compromise on the return of displaced Palestinian civilians to the northern Gaza Strip, Axios reported. A central point concerns Israel’s demand that Hamas release 40 of the 100 hostages believed to be still alive, even if some of them do not meet the original criteria for release on humanitarian grounds, the news portal reported.
Compromises possible
The first phase of an agreement would therefore provide for the release of women, soldiers, men over 50 years of age and men under 50 years of age with serious medical problems. In recent negotiations, Hamas said it did not have 40 living hostages from these categories. Senior Israeli officials believed this to be true. Israel has therefore suggested closing the gap with soldiers or men under the age of 50 who are held hostage. In return, Israel would then release a higher number of Palestinian prisoners for each of these hostages, officials were quoted as saying.
Israel has also made it clear that it would compromise on the issue of returning civilians to the northern Gaza Strip if Hamas agreed to this aspect of the agreement, it said. The US proposal envisages a gradual and almost complete withdrawal of Israel from the corridor that divides the coastal area and prevents displaced Palestinians from returning to the north. Israel wants to prevent Hamas fighters from mingling with civilians when they return. However, it is not clear whether Hamas will accept the compromise and be willing to release hostages who are soldiers or men under 50, they said. Hamas sees the latter as a means of pressure to force a permanent ceasefire.