Egypt proposed a tentative peace deal to end the conflict between Israel and the terrorist group Hamas this week, less than a week after Hamas rejected an earlier offer. The news comes amid reports that a second American held hostage by Hamas has died.
The announcement was made by the head of the Egyptian State Information Service. The effort, the official said, attempted “to bring viewpoints between all concerned parties closer, in an effort to stop Palestinian bloodshed and the aggression against the Gaza Strip and restore peace and stability to the region.”
More details about the current peace plan were not released, but it likely had some similarities with the previous peace plan suggested by Egypt. Egypt has positive relations with Israel and other Arab nations, which allowed it a unique place as a potential peacemaker.
The first proposal would see hostages gradually released during and after a cease-fire. According to the original plan, there would be a two-week cease-fire between Israel and Hamas, in which the terrorist group would release between 40 and 50 hostages, while Israel would release between 120 and 150 Palestinian prisoners.
A Massive Operation by the Israel Defense Force is taking place throughout the West Bank tonight, as Hundreds of Armored Vehicles and Thousands of Troops have Stormed several Cities across the Region including Jenin, Nablus, Hebron, Ramallah, and Jericho in what appears to be an… pic.twitter.com/uV6MFEy4gX
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) December 28, 2023
The hope would then be to release more of the more than 100 estimated Israeli hostages being held by the group. Following negotiations, Egypt and Arab allies hoped to create a new government in the Palestinian territories.
Currently, Hamas runs the Gaza Strip while the Palestinian Authority, also known as Fatah, runs the West Bank.
Hamas rejected the proposal, while Israel separately stated that it would continue its military campaign in Gaza until Hamas was removed.
“We are expanding the fight in the coming days and this will be a long battle, and it isn’t close to finished,” said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
It is not clear whether or not the second peace proposal would receive more traction than the first.
The news came after reports that American Judi Haggai died in Hamas captivity. Her husband Gad is believed to have died in Hamas captivity last week. The two were captured by Hamas terrorsts while out for a morning walk on Oct. 7.
