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Hamas reportedly rejects 2-month ceasefire as White House, Qatar say talks are ‘serious’
WASHINGTON (JTA) — Hamas reportedly rejected an Israeli offer for a two-month ceasefire in exchange for the release of hostages held in Gaza, even as top U.S. and Qatari officials said talks aimed at an extended pause in the war are “serious.”
On Monday, Axios reported that Israel proposed the pause of up to two months, during which it would release Palestinian prisoners held on security offenses and draw down its troop levels in Gaza while Hamas released all 136 hostages it is holding. CNN reported that an offer by Israel would include the removal of Hamas’ leadership, and that of other terror groups, from Gaza.
But subsequent reports quoted officials in Egypt, which is also a party to negotiations, saying Hamas rejected anything less than a permanent ceasefire and the full withdrawal of Israeli troops, and would not countenance the exile of its leadership.
Hamas terrorists invaded Israel on Oct. 7, killing more than 1,200 people, mostly civilians, brutalizing thousands and abducting more than 250. More than 25,000 Palestinians have been killed since Israel launched counterstrikes. Israel says about a third of the casualties are combatants. More than 200 Israeli soldiers have been killed in the invasion of Gaza.
The war has devastated much of Gaza and displaced the vast majority of its population of 2.3 million people. International health officials say the population is on the verge of starvation. McGurk is also negotiating terms for the entry of increased humanitarian assistance into the strip.
Within Israel, debate over the war effort has grown more heated, especially as 24 soldiers were killed on Monday, the Israeli military’s deadliest day since Oct. 7. The relatives of the hostages are leading a protest movement pushing the government to agree to a deal for their release, and some of the relatives interrupted a meeting of lawmakers to demand that the government do more to secure their loved ones’ freedom.
Israeli and Hamas officials did not comment on this week’s reports, but U.S. and Qatari officials said talks were serious, while declining to address the reports’ specifics.
John Kirby, the National Security Council spokesman, said Tuesday that Brett McGurk, President Joe Biden’s Middle East coordinator, is seeking a deal while he tours the region. McGurk is currently in Egypt which, as the only other nation bordering the Gaza Strip, has a key role in bringing together any deal.
“One of the things he’s in the region talking about is the potential for another hostage deal, which would require a humanitarian pause of some length to get that done, and that’s definitely on the agenda,” he said, while declining to confirm the specifics of the reports. “Conversations are very sober and serious about trying to get another hostage deal in place.”
Under a deal brokered by Qatar, Egypt and the United States in November, Israel and Hamas ceased fire for about a week, exchanging more than 100 hostages for roughly three times that number of Palestinian prisoners. A handful of hostages were separately released or rescued earlier, and at least three hostages were mistakenly killed by Israeli fire. At least 20 hostages are believed to be dead; the deal Israel proposed would include the return of their bodies.
Majed Al Ansari, the Qatari foreign ministry spokesman, said the talks were advanced enough that he was optimistic. Qatar is one of a handful of countries that has extensive dealings with Hamas, whose political leadership lives in Qatar, and which has funded the movement.
“I can’t comment on the specificities of the mediation as it is going on but what I can say is that we are engaged in serious discussions with both sides, we have presented ideas to both sides, we are getting a constant stream of replies from both sides, and that in its own right is a cause for optimism,” he said.
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After False Dawns, Gazans Hope Trump Will Force End to Two-Year-Old War
Palestinians walk past a residential building destroyed in previous Israeli strikes, after Hamas agreed to release hostages and accept some other terms in a US plan to end the war, in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
Exhausted Palestinians in Gaza clung to hopes on Saturday that US President Donald Trump would keep up pressure on Israel to end a two-year-old war that has killed tens of thousands and displaced the entire population of more than two million.
Hamas’ declaration that it was ready to hand over hostages and accept some terms of Trump’s plan to end the conflict while calling for more talks on several key issues was greeted with relief in the enclave, where most homes are now in ruins.
“It’s happy news, it saves those who are still alive,” said 32-year-old Saoud Qarneyta, reacting to Hamas’ response and Trump’s intervention. “This is enough. Houses have been damaged, everything has been damaged, what is left? Nothing.”
GAZAN RESIDENT HOPES ‘WE WILL BE DONE WITH WARS’
Ismail Zayda, 40, a father of three, displaced from a suburb in northern Gaza City where Israel launched a full-scale ground operation last month, said: “We want President Trump to keep pushing for an end to the war, if this chance is lost, it means that Gaza City will be destroyed by Israel and we might not survive.
“Enough, two years of bombardment, death and starvation. Enough,” he told Reuters on a social media chat.
“God willing this will be the last war. We will hopefully be done with the wars,” said 59-year-old Ali Ahmad, speaking in one of the tented camps where most Palestinians now live.
“We urge all sides not to backtrack. Every day of delay costs lives in Gaza, it is not just time wasted, lives get wasted too,” said Tamer Al-Burai, a Gaza City businessman displaced with members of his family in central Gaza Strip.
After two previous ceasefires — one near the start of the war and another earlier this year — lasted only a few weeks, he said; “I am very optimistic this time, maybe Trump’s seeking to be remembered as a man of peace, will bring us real peace this time.”
RESIDENT WORRIES THAT NETANYAHU WILL ‘SABOTAGE’ DEAL
Some voiced hopes of returning to their homes, but the Israeli military issued a fresh warning to Gazans on Saturday to stay out of Gaza City, describing it as a “dangerous combat zone.”
Gazans have faced previous false dawns during the past two years, when Trump and others declared at several points during on-off negotiations between Hamas, Israel and Arab and US mediators that a deal was close, only for war to rage on.
“Will it happen? Can we trust Trump? Maybe we trust Trump, but will Netanyahu abide this time? He has always sabotaged everything and continued the war. I hope he ends it now,” said Aya, 31, who was displaced with her family to Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip.
She added: “Maybe there is a chance the war ends at October 7, two years after it began.”
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Mass Rally in Rome on Fourth Day of Italy’s Pro-Palestinian Protests
A Pro-Palestinian demonstrator waves a Palestinian flag during a national protest for Gaza in Rome, Italy, October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Claudia Greco
Large crowds assembled in central Rome on Saturday for the fourth straight day of protests in Italy since Israel intercepted an international flotilla trying to deliver aid to Gaza, and detained its activists.
People holding banners and Palestinian flags, chanting “Free Palestine” and other slogans, filed past the Colosseum, taking part in a march that organizers hoped would attract at least 1 million people.
“I’m here with a lot of other friends because I think it is important for us all to mobilize individually,” Francesco Galtieri, a 65-year-old musician from Rome, said. “If we don’t all mobilize, then nothing will change.”
Since Israel started blocking the flotilla late on Wednesday, protests have sprung up across Europe and in other parts of the world, but in Italy they have been a daily occurrence, in multiple cities.
On Friday, unions called a general strike in support of the flotilla, with demonstrations across the country that attracted more than 2 million, according to organizers. The interior ministry estimated attendance at around 400,000.
Italy’s right-wing government has been critical of the protests, with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni suggesting that people would skip work for Gaza just as an excuse for a longer weekend break.
On Saturday, Meloni blamed protesters for insulting graffiti that appeared on a statue of the late Pope John Paul II outside Rome’s main train station, where Pro-Palestinian groups have been holding a protest picket.
“They say they are taking to the streets for peace, but then they insult the memory of a man who was a true defender and builder of peace. A shameful act committed by people blinded by ideology,” she said in a statement.
Israel launched its Gaza offensive after Hamas terrorists staged a cross border attack on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 people hostage.
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Hamas Says It Agrees to Release All Israeli Hostages Under Trump Gaza Plan
Smoke rises during an Israeli military operation in Gaza City, as seen from the central Gaza Strip, October 2, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Hamas said on Friday it had agreed to release all Israeli hostages, alive or dead, under the terms of US President Donald Trump’s Gaza proposal, and signaled readiness to immediately enter mediated negotiations to discuss the details.