DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip. Hamas said Friday it is still reviewing a U.S. proposal for a temporary ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, where at least 27 people were killed in fresh Israeli airstrikes, according to hospital officials.
The ceasefire plan, already approved by Israeli officials, initially met a lukewarm response from Hamas on Thursday. However, President Donald Trump told reporters in Washington on Friday that negotiators were close to reaching a deal.
“They’re very close to an agreement on Gaza, and we’ll let you know about it during the day or maybe tomorrow,” Trump said. Asked later in the evening if he was confident Hamas would approve the deal, he added, “They’re in a big mess. I think they want to get out of it.”
U.S. negotiators have not revealed the details of the proposal. But according to a Hamas official and an Egyptian official, speaking anonymously due to the sensitive nature of the talks, the plan includes a 60-day pause in fighting, guarantees of negotiations towards a long-term truce, and assurances that Israel would not resume hostilities after the release of hostages.
In a brief statement issued before Trump spoke, Hamas said it is consulting with Palestinian factions about the proposal from U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff. A United Nations spokesperson, Stephane Dujarric, called on all sides to “find the political courage” to secure an agreement.
While the final proposal may have been adjusted, earlier versions called for Israeli forces to pull back to pre-ceasefire positions. During the 60-day pause, Hamas would release 10 living hostages and several bodies in exchange for over 1,100 Palestinians imprisoned by Israel, including 100 convicted of deadly attacks.
The proposal also includes daily truck convoys carrying food and humanitarian aid into Gaza, where nearly three months of Israeli blockade, only slightly eased in recent days, have left the population at risk of famine.
“Negotiations are ongoing on the current proposal,” said Qatar’s ambassador to the United Nations, Alya Ahmed Saif Al-Thani, on Friday. “We are very determined to find an ending to this horrific situation in Gaza.”
On Thursday, senior Hamas official Bassem Naim said the U.S. proposal “does not respond to any of our people’s demands, foremost among which is stopping the war and famine.”
Amid these talks, hospital officials said 27 people were killed Friday in separate airstrikes, including 13 in a tent in the southern city of Khan Younis — eight of them children. The Israeli military did not immediately comment on the attacks.
Meanwhile, the bodies of 12 people, including three women, were brought to Shifa Hospital from Jabaliya refugee camp. In contrast, two more bodies arrived at a hospital in Gaza City, the Palestinian Red Crescent Society reported.
Hospital officials added that at least 72 people had been killed in Gaza during the previous day, excluding figures from northern hospitals cut off by fighting.
Since the conflict began, the Gaza Health Ministry reports that more than 54,000 people, mostly women and children, have been killed. The ministry does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its count.
Edgaroo Hernal started college at UP Diliman and received his BA in Economics from San Sebastian College, Manila, and Masters in Information Systems Management from Keller Graduate School of Management of DeVry University in Oak Brook, IL. He has 25 years of copy editing and management experience at Thomson West, a subsidiary of Thomson Reuters.
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