Efforts to end Israel’s nearly 20-month war on Gaza have produced no breakthrough. In March, Israel unilaterally ended a six-week truce and resumed airstrikes, intensifying its genocidal campaign under the pretext of destroying Hamas—despite having already killed more than 20,000 children.
"Mr Prime Minister, after Hamas rejected the deal proposal again — there are no more excuses," said National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir on his Telegram channel.
"The confusion, the shuffling and the weakness must end. We have already missed too many opportunities. It is time to go in with full force, without blinking, to destroy, and kill Hamas to the last one."
The White House said on Thursday that President Donald Trump and envoy Steve Witkoff had "submitted a ceasefire proposal to Hamas that Israel backed". Press secretary Karoline Leavitt said discussions with Hamas were "continuing".
Sources told Al Arabiya late on Thursday that Trump was expected to announce details of a proposed Gaza ceasefire within hours, but no announcement had been made by Friday.
Israel has not officially confirmed approval of the proposal, though several reports suggest it has. Axios reported Thursday that Netanyahu told families of Israeli captives he was prepared to proceed.
Hamas sources said last week the group had accepted a previous version of the deal.
But on Thursday, political bureau member Bassem Naim said the new proposal amounted to "the continuation of killing and famine... and does not meet any of the Palestinian people’s demands, foremost among them halting the war" and lifting the blockade. He said the leadership was reviewing the response "with full national responsibility".
A source close to Hamas said the updated text represented "a retreat" from earlier terms, which included "an American commitment regarding permanent ceasefire negotiations".
Israel continues to demand the right to resume its assault, a key barrier to any deal. Its position has enabled the continuation of mass killings, displacement and starvation in Gaza—conditions widely recognised by legal experts and human rights bodies as constituting genocide.
Two sources familiar with the negotiations said the current draft includes a 60-day truce, extendable to 70 days, with the release of five captives and nine bodies in exchange for Palestinian prisoners in the first week. A second round of exchanges would follow in the second week.
Hamas had earlier agreed to two exchanges under similar terms, but proposed delaying the second to the final week of the truce.
Axios, citing three US officials, reported that the White House remains hopeful the Witkoff proposal could close remaining gaps. One source said a deal could be reached within days if both sides showed flexibility.
The war, now in its nineteenth month, has killed or injured more than 177,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza health officials. Thousands remain trapped beneath the rubble. Israel’s blockade and bombardment have collapsed Gaza’s infrastructure, blocked aid, and triggered famine.
Mohammad al-Mughayyir of Gaza’s civil defence told AFP that Israeli airstrikes killed at least 44 people on Thursday, including 23 in a single strike on a home in al-Bureij refugee camp.
More than 10,100 Palestinians remain in Israeli prisons, according to human rights organisations, which report widespread torture, starvation, and denial of medical care. Hamas holds 57 captives in Gaza, 34 of whom the Israeli military says are dead.
Netanyahu has faced growing domestic pressure, with families of Israeli captives and opposition figures accusing him of prolonging the war for political survival and to placate the far-right factions in his coalition.
French President Emmanuel Macron on Friday urged European countries to "harden the collective position" against Israel if it continues to ignore the worsening humanitarian disaster. "Action must be taken in the next few hours and days," he said.
The health ministry in Gaza said on Friday that Israeli attacks since 18 March have killed at least 3,986 people. The total death toll now stands at 54,249—overwhelmingly women and children.
*This story was edited by Ahram Online.
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