Top negotiator says proposal to end war, free all hostages ‘unknown’ to him – report
IDF envoy to talks notes government point-man Gal Hirsch, who told hostages’ families of plan, is not in negotiating team; Hostage Families Forum slams ‘cheap, cynical manipulation’
By ToI Staff
Today, 11:56 am
The military’s envoy to hostage deal talks poured cold water Thursday evening on a reported new Israeli offer, saying the outline — which a Hamas official publicly rejected as soon as it was reported — was in fact unknown to the Israeli negotiating team.
According to the reported proposal, Hamas would release all of its hostages at once, rather than in drawn-out phases, and would allow for a new government to take over the Gaza Strip; in exchange, Israel would end the war in Gaza and ensure safe passage out of the strip for Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, alongside a release of Palestinian security prisoners.
Gal Hirsch, the government point man on the hostage issue, reportedly told captives’ families that the proposal had been presented last week in a meeting with US officials from the White House and State Department.
headquarters in Tel Aviv, September 19, 2024. (Tomer Neuberg/Flash90)
The military’s envoy to hostage deal talks poured cold water Thursday evening on a reported new Israeli offer, saying the outline — which a Hamas official publicly rejected as soon as it was reported — was in fact unknown to the Israeli negotiating team.
According to the reported proposal, Hamas would release all of its hostages at once, rather than in drawn-out phases, and would allow for a new government to take over the Gaza Strip; in exchange, Israel would end the war in Gaza and ensure safe passage out of the strip for Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, alongside a release of Palestinian security prisoners.
Gal Hirsch, the government point man on the hostage issue, reportedly told captives’ families that the proposal had been presented last week in a meeting with US officials from the White House and State Department.
But Nitzan Alon, the Israeli military’s envoy to the negotiations, told family members of the captives on Thursday that the reported proposal was unknown to the actual negotiating team, Channel 12 reported.
“The proposal that Gal Hirsch presented to the United States is unknown to the negotiating team, Hirsch was never a part of the negotiating team,” the military envoy reportedly told the hostages’ family members.
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant echoed Alon’s statement, saying he too was unaware of the proposal and that it had not been discussed by the government, the network reported.
And Barak Ravid, the Axios reporter and Walla correspondent, said on X that a US source told him members of the American negotiating team confirmed they had not met with Hirsch and had never received such a proposal.
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum, responding to the reports, accused the government of lying about a new proposal in order to sabotage actual, ongoing negotiations.
timesofisrael.com
Nobody believes the US or Israel but they still maintain the charade. |
