Netanyahu visits Gaza as truce talks with Hamas continue

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has visited northern Gaza, his office announced, as the military pressed on with its aerial and ground attacks on the Palestinian territory.

"Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited the northern Gaza Strip today," a statement from his office said.

The military resumed its offensive on Gaza on 18 March, ending a two-month ceasefire with Hamas that had largely halted the fighting in Gaza.

Since then, Israeli forces have again seized large parts of the territory as hundreds of thousands of people fled from areas where the military intensified its assault.

Senior Israeli officials including Mr Netanyahu have repeatedly claimed that only military pressure would force Hamas into releasing the remaining hostages held in Gaza.

The announcement came as a senior Hamas official said the group expects to respond within 48 hours to an Israeli ceasefire proposal it received through mediators.

"Hamas will most likely send its response to the mediators within the next 48 hours, as the movement is still conducting in-depth consultations," the official told AFP.

Hamas said yesterday it had received Israel's latest proposal to halt the war in Gaza, now in its 18th month.

The official said the offer includes a truce of at least 45 days in return for the release of 10 living hostages held in Gaza.

It also provides for the release of 1,231 Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails and the entry of humanitarian aid into the territory, which has been under complete blockade since 2 March.

The proposal calls for a "permanent end to the war" on the condition Palestinian factions in Gaza, including Hamas, disarm, the official said.

Hamas has rejected the disarmament demand as a "red line" and "non-negotiable".

Release of Edan Alexander 'gesture of goodwill'

The Hamas official said that the Israeli proposal calls for the release of Israeli-American hostage Edan Alexander on the first day of the ceasefire as a "gesture of goodwill".

Mr Alexander is the only living hostage to hold US citizenship.

On the second day, Hamas would exchange five more hostages for 66 Palestinian prisoners serving life sentences in Israeli jails and 611 Gazans detained during the current war.

On the third day, talks would begin over "day after" scenarios for when the war ends, including the disarmament of Hamas and other Palestinian factions in exchange for a permanent ceasefire.

Hamas has insisted that preserving its arms is a red line.

In the second week of the ceasefire, Hamas would release four more living hostages in exchange for 54 Palestinian prisoners serving life sentences and another 500 Gaza detainees.

Israel yet to comment

Israel has yet to comment on the proposal's contents

The campaign group Tikva Forum of Hostages' Families, which represents a small group of families of hostages advocating for the continuation of military pressure, said that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had confirmed that the country was indeed seeking the release of 10 living captives.

According to the group, Mr Netanyahu spoke with Ditza Or, the mother of hostage Avinatan Or, late yesterday and confirmed that Mr Alexander was among those included in the proposed exchange.

She responded by saying that "there is a moral obligation to return everyone together in one stage and on one bus," the group added.

Of the 251 hostages seized during the unprecedented October 2023 Hamas attack that sparked the war, 58 are still held in Gaza, including 34 the Israeli military says are dead.

Read more: What we know about Israel's latest Gaza ceasefire proposal