Hamas official: Ceasefire crucial to find Gaza hostages

A senior Hamas representative recently communicated that a ceasefire is essential to allow for the safe and efficient determination of the whereabouts and condition of Israeli hostages scattered throughout the Gaza Strip. Despite ongoing discussions in Cairo, involving U.S., Qatari, and Egyptian mediators since Sunday, no significant progress has been made on the ceasefire proposal.

Bassem Naim, a Hamas official, explained, “The diverse locations and groups holding the hostages, compounded by casualties buried under rubble alongside Gazans, necessitate a ceasefire. This pause is crucial to facilitate the retrieval and accurate identification of those captured.” He emphasized the complexity of the situation, indicating that securing heavy equipment for extraction is also part of the negotiation.

Naim clarified that while the hostages’ fate is critical, it represents just one aspect of the broader ceasefire discussions taking place in Cairo. “We are negotiating a ceasefire, not exclusively a prisoner exchange; the latter is merely one element of these talks,” he stated.

Taher al-Nunu, another senior figure within Hamas, expressed dissatisfaction with the current proposals, which he believes do not meet Hamas’s demands, particularly criticizing the Israeli condition of maintaining military presence in Gaza during a temporary ceasefire.

The proposed agreement under discussion aims to pause combat for six weeks and includes a prisoner exchange, swapping around 40 hostages for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners. Additionally, it plans to enhance humanitarian aid deliveries and facilitate the return of displaced Palestinians to their remnants of homes.

This conflict, reignited by a Hamas-led attack on Israel on October 7, has resulted in significant casualties, with official figures citing 1,170 deaths, predominantly civilians. The subsequent Israeli counteroffensive has claimed the lives of 33,545 individuals in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to reports from health officials in the Hamas-controlled area.