TEL AVIV, December 29. /TASS/: Israel is negotiating the release of hostages held by the radical Palestinian movement Hamas in the Gaza Strip, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the relatives of the hostages.
According to The Jerusalem Post, Netanyahu confirmed that Israel is working to return all the hostages, adding that Qatar and Egypt have made two separate proposals to move the issue forward. "We are holding contacts at this very moment," the prime minister said. "I cannot detail the status [of the talks]. We are working to return them all. This is our goal," he told the hostages' families.
The meeting with the hostages' families came ahead of a meeting of the war cabinet to discuss proposals by Qatar and Egypt to mediate in the Israel-Hamas conflict.
On December 24, the Asharq News TV reported, citing sources, that Egypt had offered Israel and Hamas a three-phase plan to resolve the conflict over Gaza, which includes the introduction of a humanitarian ceasefire in the Palestinian enclave for a period of two weeks with the possibility of extension, the exchange of hostages and prisoners, the cessation of hostilities by Israel, the withdrawal of tanks and the provision of additional supplies of humanitarian aid to Gaza. The second phase includes the launch of a Palestinian national dialogue to bridge the Palestinian leadership divide and form a technocratic government. The third phase includes a comprehensive ceasefire in Gaza, the withdrawal of Israeli troops from the enclave, and the release of Israeli servicemen held by radicals.
