Hamas claims it won’t develop weapons, dig tunnels during long-term truce with Israel
In nonstarter for Israel, terror group is seeking comprehensive deal under which it would cede control of Gaza’s governance but would stop short of full disarmament
Jacob Magid is The Times of Israel's US bureau chief
Hamas told Arab mediators last week that it is willing to enter a long-term truce with Israel during which it would halt all military operations, including the development of weapons and the digging of tunnels, two officials familiar with the matter told The Times of Israel on Sunday.
The truce would be part of a comprehensive deal that the terror group is seeking in order to end the Gaza war sparked by its October 7, 2023, onslaught, a senior Palestinian official and a diplomat from an Arab mediating country said.
Hamas is also willing to cede governing control of Gaza to an independent body of Palestinian technocrats, as envisioned by an Egyptian proposal for the postwar administration of the Strip, the officials said.
To enforce the halt on military activities against Israel, some Hamas officials have indicated willingness to have all of the group’s weapons placed in a guarded warehouse, according to the Arab diplomat.
As for the length of the truce, Hamas is willing for it to last five, 10 or even 15 years, the Palestinian official said.
The idea goes further than Hamas has been willing to to go in the past, but still falls well short of the full disarmament that Israel is demanding, and is accordingly a nonstarter.
The comprehensive deal that Hamas negotiators have proposed to Arab mediators would see the return of all remaining Israeli hostages in one batch in exchange for an agreed-upon number of Palestinian prisoners, the officials said.
The deal would also see a permanent ceasefire, the complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza and the reopening of crossings to allow for the entry of humanitarian aid and the commencement of reconstruction.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reiterated his opposition to such a deal on Saturday night, asserting that Israel would not agree to end the war and withdraw from Gaza, even if that meant securing the release of all remaining 59 hostages, as doing so would leave Hamas in power in Gaza — an outcome he would not allow.
Some of his opponents have argued that Israel should prioritize freeing the hostages and deal with Hamas’s dismantlement afterward, but Netanyahu asserted Saturday that this wouldn’t be possible as the terror group is seeking “binding” international commitments that would block Israel from attacking after a comprehensive deal is reached.
In January, Netanyahu agreed to a phased ceasefire deal with Hamas that effectively blocked Israel from resuming the war. The framework secured the release of 33 hostages during a six-week first phase. Toward the beginning of that phase, the sides were supposed to begin negotiations regarding the terms of the second phase, which envisioned a permanent ceasefire and a full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza.
Not wanting to implement those latter two conditions, Israel largely refused to hold negotiations on the second phase, instead seeking to rework the terms of the deal in order to secure another interim ceasefire during which additional hostages would be released without ruling out an IDF return to fighting afterward.
While the Trump administration has backed this effort, Hamas has rebuffed all such proposals, leading Israel to resume intensive military operations throughout Gaza on March 18.
Over 1,500 Palestinians have been killed since, according to the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry, whose figures haven’t been verified and don’t differentiate between civilians and combatants.
Hamas has since shifted away from utter rejection of the idea of another interim ceasefire but is still seeking guarantees from the mediators that Israel will hold negotiations on the terms of a permanent ceasefire, which Jerusalem has yet to agree to, the Palestinian official and the Arab diplomat said.
Accordingly, talks have remained at an impasse.
The Times of Israel Community.