Hamas and the allied Islamic Jihad have rejected an Egyptian proposal to relinquish control of the Gaza Strip in exchange for a permanent ceasefire, two Egyptian security sources said on Monday.
Both groups, which have been holding separate talks with Egyptian mediators in Cairo, rejected offering any concessions beyond the possible release of more hostages seized on October 7th.
Egypt has proposed a “vision”, also supported by Qatari mediators, that would include a ceasefire in exchange for the release of more hostages and lead to a broader agreement that includes a permanent ceasefire with a change of leadership in Gaza, currently controlled by Hamas.
Egypt proposed elections while offering assurances to Hamas that its members would not be chased or prosecuted, but they refused any concessions other than the release of the hostages, the sources said. More than 100 hostages are still believed to be held in Gaza.
A Hamas official who recently visited Cairo declined to comment directly on the specific offers of more temporary humanitarian truces and indicated the group’s rejection by reiterating its official stance.
“Hamas seeks to end Israeli aggression against our people, the massacres and genocide, and we have been talking to our Egyptian brothers about ways to do this. We also said that the aid for our people must keep going and must increase and it must reach all the population in the north and the south,” the official said.
“After stopping the aggression and increasing aid, we are ready to discuss the exchange of prisoners,” he added.
The Islamic Jihad, which is also holding hostages in Gaza, echoed that stance.
An Islamic Jihad delegation led by its leader, Ziad al-Nakhala, is currently in Cairo to exchange ideas with Egyptian officials on prisoner exchange offers and other issues, but an official said the group had set an end to Israel’s military offensive as a pre-condition for further negotiations.
Islamic Jihad insists, the official said, that any exchange of prisoners must be based on the principle of “all for all”, which means the release of all hostages held in Gaza by Hamas and Islamic Jihad in exchange for the release of all Palestinians imprisoned in Israel.
Before the war, there were 5.250 Palestinians in Israeli prisons, but the number has now risen to about 10.000 as Israel has arrested thousands more in the West Bank and Gaza since October 7th, according to the Palestinian Prisoners Association.
