Netanyahu hopes to announce the release of all hostages from Gaza ‘in the coming days’

TEL AVIV Israel AP Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated he hopes to announce the release of all hostages from Gaza in the coming days as Israel and Hamas prepare for indirect talks in Egypt on Monday on a new U S plan to end the war In a brief announcement late Saturday Netanyahu declared he has sent a delegation to Egypt to finalize technical details adding that our goal is to contain these negotiations to a time frame of a insufficient days But Netanyahu signaled there would not be a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza something Hamas has long demanded He stated Israel s military will continue to hold territories it controls in Gaza and that Hamas will be disarmed in the plan s second phase diplomatically or through a military path by us The prime minister spoke after Hamas announced it has accepted specific elements of the U S plan President Donald Trump welcomed the militant group s report but on Saturday warned that Hamas must move expeditiously or else all bets will be off Trump later mentioned the ceasefire would begin directly once Hamas confirms the initial withdrawal line in Gaza A map with his social media post appeared to show much of Gaza still open to Israeli forces Trump has also ordered Israel to stop bombing Gaza Selected in Gaza City published a notable easing of Israeli strikes Saturday though hospital representatives declared at least people were killed including women and children Israel s army disclosed leaders instructed it to prepare for the U S plan s first phase Israel has moved to a defensive-only position in Gaza and will not actively strike revealed an official who was not authorized to speak to the media on the record Still an Israeli strike on Gaza City s Tuffah neighborhood killed at least and injured others disclosed Al-Ahli hospital director Fadel Naim The strikes are still ongoing Naim revealed Israel s military commented it struck a Hamas member and regrets any harm caused to uninvolved civilians Shifa Hospital director Mohamed Abu Selmiyah earlier Saturday explained Israeli strikes killed five Palestinians across Gaza City Momentum ahead of war s anniversary Trump appears determined to deliver on pledges to end the war and return all hostages ahead of Tuesday s second anniversary of the Hamas attack that sparked it on Oct His proposal has widespread international endorsement On Friday Netanyahu s office reported Israel was committed to ending the war Monday s indirect talks are meant to prepare the way for the release of hostages from Gaza and Palestinians from Israeli detention mediator Egypt stated A senior Egyptian official stated U S envoy Steve Witkoff will excursion to Egypt to head the U S negotiating squad The talks also will discuss maps showing the expected withdrawal of Israeli forces from certain areas in Gaza declared the official who spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn t authorized to brief the media The official also declared Arab mediators are preparing for a comprehensive dialogue among Palestinians aimed at unifying their position toward Gaza s future The Palestinian Islamic Jihad Gaza s second the majority powerful militant group commented it accepted Hamas response after rejecting the plan days earlier Progress but uncertainty ahead Under the plan Hamas would release the remaining hostages around of them supposed to be alive within three days It would give up power and disarm In return Israel would halt its offensive and withdraw from much of Gaza release hundreds of Palestinian prisoners and allow an influx of humanitarian aid and eventual reconstruction Hamas noted it was willing to release the hostages and hand over power to other Palestinians but that other aspects of the plan require further consultations among Palestinians It didn t address the issue of Hamas demilitarizing Amir Avivi a retired Israeli general and chairman of Israel s Defense and Assurance Forum noted while Israel can afford to stop firing for a meager days in Gaza so the hostages can be distributed it will resume its offensive if Hamas doesn t lay down its arms Others reported that Hamas position fundamentally remains unchanged Its rhetoric exclusively repackages old demands in softer language reported Oded Ailam a researcher at the Jerusalem Center for Measure and Foreign Affairs Still two vocal members of the right-wing bloc of Netanyahu s coalition Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Gvir criticized the plan s progress but didn t threaten to forthwith leave the authorities And specific speakers at the large weekly rally in Tel Aviv over the war expressed a cautious hope not heard for months A group representing a few hostages families announced the prospect of seeing loved ones return has never been closer They appealed to Trump to keep pushing with full force and warned that extremists on both sides will try to sabotage the plan Meanwhile protests have erupted across Europe calling for the war s end Palestinians are truly tired Chosen Palestinians in Gaza worried that talks will break down again We want practical implementation We want a truce on the ground mentioned Sameer Qudeeh in Khan Younis I hope Hamas ends the war because we are truly tired disclosed Mohammad Shaat in Khan Younis as anxious people roamed the shattered streets On Saturday Israel s army warned Palestinians against trying to return to Gaza City calling it a dangerous combat zone Two residents disclosed that since the morning Israeli tanks and troops had not advanced but artillery shells and airstrikes were heard We can still see the quadcopters everywhere Mohamed al-Nashar noted In southern Gaza the Palestine Red Crescent Society reported its Saraya field hospital received bodies and over injured after Israeli strikes on Saturday afternoon Gaza s Physical condition Ministry commented the Palestinian death toll in the war has topped The toll jumped after the ministry disclosed it added more than names whose input had been verified The Wellbeing Ministry does not say how a multitude of were civilians or combatants It says women and children make up around half the dead The ministry is part of the Hamas-run cabinet and the U N and a large number of independent experts consider its figures to be the the bulk reliable estimate of wartime casualties