Deal meets your demands so free hostages, US and UK tell Hamas

The leaders of 18 countries, including the United States and Britain, have signed a joint letter calling on Hamas to release the hostages held in Gaza after talks aimed at ending the crisis faltered.

A senior US administration official said that a proposed deal to release vulnerable hostages gave Hamas almost all of the things it was demanding to end the war.

He added that the deal was being rejected directly by Yahya Sinwar, the group’s leader, who is believed to be in the network of tunnels in Gaza.

“Justice will come for Sinwar,” the official said.

“There have been a number of times when the negotiations have made significant progress outside with Hamas leaders living in fancy hotels, but Sinwar is the ultimate decision-maker and when the question goes to him, over whether or not Hamas is going to sign up … the answer that comes back from Sinwar is no.”

Israel says it is poised to move on Rafah despite international warnings
Israel’s military is poised to evacuate Palestinian civilians from Rafah and assault Hamas hold-outs in the… southern Gaza Strip city, a senior Israeli defence official said on Wednesday, despite international warnings of a humanitarian catastrophe. A spokesperson for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government said Israel was “moving ahead”

There is an indication that the signatories to the letter hope it may lead to a breakthrough, given that the talks between the different parties, being mediated by Qatari and Egyptian negotiators, appear to have stalled.

“The offer we have put on the table we believe is extremely forward-leaning,” the US official said.

“What came back from Hamas was not constructive at all. Right now, the core truth: there’s a deal on the table. It meets nearly all of Hamas’s demands, and what they need to do is release the vulnerable hostages to get things moving. That’s where we are.”

There are believed to be about 130 people still held in Gaza who hold at least one of the nationalities represented in this morning’s joint letter. About 240 people were taken by Hamas as hostages on October 7, during its terrorist attack in Israel, when 1200 people were killed.

A number of hostages have been released or rescued, and the bodies of others have been recovered. It is not clear how many of the remaining hostages are still alive.

“We call for the immediate release of all hostages held by Hamas in Gaza for over 200 days,” the leaders wrote in their letter.

“They include our own citizens. The fate of the hostages and the civilian population in Gaza, who are protected under international law, is of international concern.

“We emphasise that the deal on the table to release the hostages would bring an immediate and prolonged ceasefire in Gaza, that would facilitate a surge of additional necessary humanitarian assistance to be delivered throughout Gaza, and lead to the credible end of hostilities.”

Other countries signing the statement were Argentina, Austria, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Colombia, Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Spain and Thailand.

On Tuesday, Hamas released a two-minute proof of life video in which Hersh Goldberg-Polin, 23, an American-Israeli hostage, said that about half the remaining captives had been killed by Israeli air strikes. Israel disputes the figure. Mr Goldberg-Polin’s left hand had been amputated.

The Times