The Initial Deal Israel Agreed To

Lebanese report: Israel’s offer
would see partial IDF pullback
in 1st phase of deal
Egyptian mediators said to convey terms to
Hamas: 33 hostages to be released in initial 40-
day phase; all hostages ultimately to be freed,
with provisions for sustained calm in Gaza

The report by Lebanese outlet Al-Akhbar, the
latest news organization to claim to offer details
on the proposal, came after Egyptian mediators
conveyed the text of Israel’s offer to a Hamas
delegation in Cairo on Tuesday.
According to Al-Akhbar, the first stage of the deal
presented to Hamas would last 40 days, and
would include a staged withdrawal of Israeli
troops from parts of the Strip to allow the
movement of humanitarian aid and the return of
civilians to their homes.
The deal would provide for 500 trucks, including
50 fuel trucks, to enter the Gaza Strip each day,
and would include the delivery of supplies
designed to rehabilitate the Strip. Half of the
trucks each day would be earmarked for northern
Gaza, which has been largely cut off from the aid
entering via the south of the enclave since the
start of Israel’s ground operation.
At the same time, Israel would cease aerial
surveillance of the Strip for eight hours a day, or
10 hours on days hostages are released.

In return, Hamas would be required to release at
least 33 living captives — female civilians and
soldiers, children under the age of 19, the elderly,
the sick and the wounded. On day seven of the
deal, Hamas would provide the names of all
other living hostages beyond the 33.
Previous offers rejected by Hamas had included
the demand for 40 hostages to be released under
the same criteria, but this number was lowered
to 33 during the most recent round of
negotiations after Israel reportedly assessed that
some of the previously sought 40 hostages had
died in Hamas captivity.

For every female civilian and child released
during this phase of the deal, Israel would free
20 minors and female Palestinian security
prisoners, Al-Akhbar claimed. For every sick,
elderly and injured hostage released, Israel
would free 20 prisoners over 50 who are also sick
and injured, as long as they are not serving a
sentence of over 10 years.

Finally, for every female soldier released during
the first phase of the deal, Israel would free 20
Palestinian security prisoners serving a life
sentence, and another 20 serving 10 years at
most. The prisoners would be released either to
Gaza or abroad.
Should Hamas agree to the offer, it will be
allowed to provide a list of up to 20 security
prisoners that it wants Israel to release during
the first 40-day phase of the deal, although Israel
will retain a veto.
According to the report, Hamas would release
three captive women on the first day that the
agreement comes into effect, and then release
three more hostages every three days, until the
33rd day, with Israel releasing the corresponding
ratio of Palestinian security prisoners at the same
time.
On the 34th day of the deal, Hamas would be
required to provide a list of all remaining
hostages who fit the criteria for release.
The initial 40-day truce could then be extended,
with the agreement of both parties, in exchange
for the release of additional hostages.
A similar plan was implemented during a truce
in late November — the only one of the war —
which had originally only been expected to last
for four days but was extended to seven, bringing
about the release of 105 hostages in total.

As per the reported text of the offer drawn up in
Egypt, indirect negotiations between Israel and
Hamas would begin anew on the 16th day of the
truce, to set out an arrangement to restore
sustainable calm to Gaza over the second and
third stages of the deal.
As such, the exact details of the latter two stages
have yet to be defined and were only broadly
outlined in the Lebanese outlet’s report.
According to the report, the second stage of the
deal would last 42 days and involve completing
the agreed-upon arrangements for sustainable
calm. In exchange, Hamas would be required to
release the remaining Israeli male civilians and
soldiers, in exchange for a yet-to-be-specified
number of Palestinian security prisoners, and the
full withdrawal of IDF troops from Gaza.
The third and final stage of the deal would again
last 42 days and Hamas would reportedly be
required to hand over the bodies of those who
were killed on October 7 or died in captivity, in
exchange for bodies of Palestinian security
prisoners who died in Israeli custody.
War erupted on October 7 when thousands of
Hamas-led terrorists burst into southern Israel in
a shock attack, overrunning military posts and
carrying out brutal massacres in multiple Israeli
communities. Some 1,200 people were killed in
the onslaught and 253 people were taken
hostage.
Israel has estimated that 129 of the hostages
seized on October 7 remain in Gaza — not all of
them alive — following the November truce. Four
hostages were released prior to that, and three
were rescued alive by troops. The bodies of 12
hostages have also been recovered, including
three mistakenly killed by the military. The IDF
has also confirmed the deaths of 34 of those still
in captivity.
In addition to the hostages seized on October 7,
Hamas has also been holding the bodies of fallen
IDF soldiers Oron Shaul and Hadar Goldin since
2014, as well as two Israeli civilians, Avera
Mengistu and Hisham al-Sayed, who are both
thought to be alive after entering the Strip of
their own accord in 2014 and 2015 respectively.

With regard to the terror group’s capabilities, the
deal offered via Egypt stipulated that Hamas must
refrain from reconstructing military
infrastructure or facilities in the future, and none
of the equipment or raw material imported for
the rehabilitation of Gaza may be used for
military purposes.

The text does not specify, however, how this
would be enforced.
The rehabilitation of the Gaza Strip would begin
during the first phase of the deal, starting with
the restoration of Gaza’s roads, electricity, water,
sanitation and communication infrastructure.
Preparations for a 5-year reconstruction plan for
Gaza’s homes and civilian infrastructure would
be completed during the second phase of the
deal, and construction would begin in the third
stage.
The Lebanese report largely dovetailed with
previous reports on the details of the possible
deal, including the staged structure of the
agreement and the requirement for talks aimed
at ending the war and allowing Gazan civilians to
return to the north of the country, both key
Hamas demands.
Speaking to the Times of Israel on Tuesday, an
Israeli official said one of the timelines under
discussion is a 10-week pause in fighting in
exchange for 33 living hostages.
Israel was also said to be examining the
possibility that Egypt, not Israel, would be
responsible for carrying out security checks for
Gazans moving back to the north of the Strip.
An Israeli official told The Times of Israel on
Tuesday that Israel was expecting a Hamas
response to its offer by Wednesday evening