|By Adejumo Adekunle-
-New 60-day truce proposal raises hopes of breakthrough
-Gaza reels from intensified bombings as humanitarian crisis worsens
Hamas says it is ready to begin immediate negotiations for a new ceasefire deal in Gaza, signaling a potential breakthrough in the 21-month-long war that has claimed tens of thousands of lives and left much of the territory in ruins.
The group made the announcement late Friday following internal consultations with other Palestinian factions. It comes just days before Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to Washington, where U.S. President Donald Trump is ramping up pressure to broker a truce and end the prolonged conflict.
In a statement, Hamas declared its willingness “to engage immediately and seriously in a cycle of negotiations on the mechanism to put in place” the terms of a draft ceasefire agreement backed by the United States. Islamic Jihad, a close Hamas ally, has also endorsed the move but emphasized that any deal must include concrete guarantees that Israel will not resume its offensive once hostages are released.
Speaking aboard Air Force One, President Trump cautiously welcomed the news: “That’s good. They haven’t briefed me on it. We have to get it over with. We have to do something about Gaza.”
According to sources close to the negotiations, the proposed truce would last 60 days. During that period, Hamas would release roughly half of the remaining Israeli hostages—believed to be around 22 people—in exchange for the release of an undisclosed number of Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.
Since the conflict began with a surprise Hamas-led assault on Israel in October 2023, 251 people were taken hostage. Israeli officials now believe 49 are still held in Gaza, though 27 of them are presumed dead.
Despite fresh diplomatic movement, violence on the ground shows no sign of abating. On Saturday, Israeli airstrikes intensified across the Gaza Strip, killing at least 20 people, including children. Five were killed when a school was struck in Gaza City, while another strike near a school sheltering displaced civilians claimed three more lives and left about 10 others wounded.
Civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal also reported that 52 people died from Israeli bombardment on Friday alone. The Gaza Health Ministry, run by Hamas, places the total death toll at 57,268, mostly civilians—a figure deemed credible by United Nations monitors.
Israel launched its massive military campaign in October 2023, vowing to dismantle Hamas and rescue hostages taken during the initial assault. That attack, according to Israeli sources, killed 1,219 people—mostly civilians—and triggered one of the bloodiest chapters in the region’s history.
Previous ceasefires brokered by Qatar, Egypt, and the United States temporarily paused the fighting and allowed for limited prisoner-hostage exchanges, but long-term peace has remained elusive.
As humanitarian conditions continue to spiral in Gaza, global attention is once again focused on diplomatic corridors in Washington, Cairo, and Doha, where hopes rise that this latest round of negotiations may finally deliver a sustained pause in hostilities.
