Extract from ABC News
Hamas has restated its demand for an end to the war in Gaza. (AP Photo: Jehad Alshrafi)
Hamas has responded to US-backed ceasefire proposals, saying it would agree to release 28 living and dead hostages, restating its demand for an end to the war and a withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza.
The Palestinian militant group said it would release 10 living hostages and hand over the bodies of 18 dead in exchange for Palestinian prisoners and detainees held in Israeli prisons.
A Hamas official described the group's response to the proposals from US President Donald Trump's special Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff as "positive" but said it was seeking some amendments.
The official did not elaborate on the changes being sought by the group.
"This response aims to achieve a permanent ceasefire, a complete withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, and to ensure the flow of humanitarian aid to our people in the Strip," Hamas said in a statement.
Smoke rises following an Israeli bombardment in southern Gaza on Thursday. (AP: Abdel Kareem Hana)
Hamas response 'unacceptable': Witkoff
Mr Witkoff said Hamas's response was "totally unacceptable and only takes us backwards".
His proposal would see a 60-day truce and the exchange of 28 of the 58 hostages still held in Gaza for more than 1,200 Palestinian prisoners and detainees, along with the entry of humanitarian aid into the enclave.
A Palestinian official familiar with the talks told Reuters that among amendments Hamas was seeking was the release of the hostages in three phases over the 60-day truce and more aid distribution in different areas.
Hamas also wants guarantees the deal will lead to a permanent ceasefire, the official said.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel would continue its action in Gaza "for the return of hostages and defeat of Hamas".
Israel has previously rejected Hamas's conditions, instead demanding the complete disarmament of the group and its military force, along with the return of all 58 remaining hostages.
Hamas military leader killed in strike
On Saturday local time, the Israeli military said it had killed Hamas military leader Mohammad Sinwar, on May 13.
Sinwar, the younger brother of Yahya Sinwar, the group's deceased leader and mastermind of the October 2023 attack on Israel, was the target of an Israeli strike on a hospital in southern Gaza.
Hamas has neither confirmed nor denied his death.
The Israeli military, which relaunched its air and ground campaign in March following a two-month truce, said on Saturday it was continuing to hit targets in Gaza, including sniper posts.
Israel claims to have killed a senior Hamas leader inside Gaza.
The campaign has cleared large areas along the boundaries of the Gaza Strip, squeezing the population of more than 2 million to an ever-narrower section along the coast and around the southern city of Khan Younis.
Israel imposed a blockade on all supplies entering the enclave at the beginning of March in an effort to weaken Hamas and has found itself under increasing pressure from an international community shocked by the desperate humanitarian situation the blockade has created.
On Saturday, aid groups said dozens of World Food Programme trucks carrying flour to Gaza bakeries had been hijacked by armed groups and subsequently looted by people desperate for food after weeks of mounting hunger.
"After nearly 80 days of a total blockade, communities are starving and they are no longer willing to watch food pass them by," the WFP said in a statement.
Gazans gather near the aid distribution site run by the US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation in Rafah. (Reuters: Hatem Khaled TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY)
'A mockery'
The incident was the latest in a series that has underscored the shaky security situation hampering the delivery of aid into Gaza, following the easing of a weeks-long Israeli blockade this month.
The United Nations said on Friday the situation in Gaza was the worst since the start of the war 19 months ago, with the entire population facing the risk of famine despite a resumption of limited aid deliveries earlier this month.
"The aid that's being sent now makes a mockery of the mass tragedy unfolding under our watch," Philippe Lazzarini, head of the main UN relief organisation for Palestinians, said in a message on X.
Gaza blockade eases amid warnings more aid is needed to avoid famine (Matthew Doran)
Reuters/ABC
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