Israel has offered a cease-fire in Gaza for two months. The country is said to have already sent the proposal to the Palestinian armed group Hamas for consideration through mediators in Qatar and Egypt.
The proposal emphasizes dividing the process of release of hostages held by Hamas into several stages. Among the hostages who are over 60 years old and in ill health, Israel wants to release them first.
The resolution mentions the release of detained Israeli women soldiers, civilian youth and male soldiers in the next phases. It has also been said that in exchange for the release of these hostages, several Palestinians imprisoned in various Israeli prisons will be released. However, the number of people who will be released has not been disclosed.
Israel did not promise to end the war in the resolution; It said, however, that the Israeli military presence in major Gaza cities would be reduced and that Palestinians who left their homes in the Gaza Strip after the outbreak of war would be allowed to return to their respective areas.
Several members of Israel’s wartime cabinet said they expected the entire process of releasing the hostages to take two months. No operations will be conducted in Gaza during this period.
On October 7, Hamas fighters killed more than 1,200 people, including military-civilian Israelis and foreign citizens, in an ambush at the Erez border in Israel. Along with that, 240 Israelis and citizens of other countries were taken hostage.
After its establishment in 1948, Israel witnessed the killing of so many people in one day for the first time in its 75-year history. In response to the unprecedented attack, the Israeli Air Force launched an operation in Gaza from that day, and a week later, the ground forces joined the Air Force.
More than 25,000 Palestinians have been killed, at least 60,000 injured in Gaza in the last three and a half months, and hundreds of thousands of people are still buried under the rubble of various buildings that have collapsed due to Israeli bombardment.
Hamas released a total of 108 hostages in the seven days of a humanitarian pause announced from November 25 to December 1. The remaining 132 are still in their custody.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke to family members of the hostages on Monday. He assured to bring back the hostages held there quickly.
