Israel proposes 2-month truce in exchange for freeing all the hostages: report
By Social Links for Ronny Reyes
Published Jan. 22, 2024, 3:52 p.m. ET
Israeli leaders have proposed a cease-fire of up to two months in exchange for the release of all the hostages in Gaza, officials said Monday.
After heated meetings over the Israel-Hamas conflict and hostage situation, the Jewish country’s war cabinet approved a new plan coordinated with Qatari and Egyptian negotiators that could see the more than 130 hostages held by Hamas released, two Israeli officials close to the talks told Axios.
The hostage deal would see all the women and men who are over 60 years old and who are in critical condition or have severe health problems released first.
The next phase would free the hostages who are not affiliated with the Israel Defense Forces. After that, Hamas would release Israeli soldiers, as well as the bodies of hostages who died in captivity, the officials said.
In exchange for freeing the hostages, Israeli officials would agree to release Palestinian prisoners in its jails, with separate negotiations scheduled on who would be allowed to walk free.
In previous deals brokered by Qatar, Israel agreed to free three prisoners for every hostage released.
But major hurdles remain to seal the deal.
The proposed plan emphasizes that the cease-fire would be only temporary, with the IDF set to be deployed away from the Gaza Strip’s largest cities so as to allow Palestinians to return to their homes.
Once the exchange is complete, the war will resume, the Israeli officials said.
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https://nypost.com/2024/01/22/news/israel-proposes-2-month-truce-in-exchange-for-freeing-all-of-the-hostages-report/