Israel offer fell short of demands: Hamas
The militant group says it would still study the proposal
Hamas said on Tuesday that an Israeli proposal on a ceasefire in their war in Gaza met none of the demands of Palestinian militant factions, but it would study the offer further and deliver its response to mediators.
The proposal was delivered to the Palestinian Islamist movement by Egyptian and Qatari mediators at talks in Cairo that aim to find a way out of the devastating war in the Gaza Strip, now in its seventh month.
Israeli forces meanwhile stepped up bombardments on
Deir Al-balah and Rafah in central and southern Gaza respectively on Tuesday, two areas they have not so far invaded, residents said.
The talks in Cairo, also attended by the director of the US Central Intelligence Agency William Burns, have so far failed reach a breakthrough towards pausing the war.
In a statement, Hamas said a new Israeli ceasefire proposal fell short of its demands. "The movement (Hamas) is interested in reaching an agreement that puts an end to the aggression on our people. Despite that, the Israeli position remains intransigent and it didn't meet any of the demands of our people and our resistance," Hamas said. However, it said it would review the proposal further and go back to the mediators with its response. Hamas wants any agreement to secure an end to the Israeli military offensive, a withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, and to allow displaced people to return to their homes across the small, densely populated enclave. Israel wants to secure the release of hostages seized by Hamas in the October 7 cross-border rampage that triggered the conflict and to neutralise Hamas - which has ruled Gaza since 2007 - as a threat.
It has said it is keen to reach a prisoners-for-hostages deal by which it would free a number of Palestinians jailed in its prisons in return for the hostages in Gaza, but it was not ready to end its military campaign.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Monday a date had been set for a ground assault on Rafah, a city on Gaza's southern border with Egypt which it says is the last stronghold of Hamas combat forces in the territory.