Hamas says it's ready for a ceasefire but wants a complete end to the
war in Gaza
[July 02, 2025]
By FATMA KHALED, SAMY MAGDY and BASSEM MROUE
CAIRO (AP) — Hamas suggested Wednesday that it was open to a ceasefire
agreement with Israel, but stopped short of accepting a U.S.-backed
proposal announced by U.S. President Donald Trump hours earlier,
insisting on its longstanding position that any deal bring an end to the
war in Gaza.
Trump said Tuesday that Israel had agreed on terms for a 60-day
ceasefire in Gaza and urged Hamas to accept the deal before conditions
worsen. The U.S. leader has been increasing pressure on the Israeli
government and Hamas to broker a ceasefire, and hostage agreement and
bring about an end to the war.
Trump said the 60-day period would be used to work toward ending the war
— something Israel says it won't accept until Hamas is defeated. He said
that a deal might come together as soon as next week.
But Hamas' response, which emphasized its demand that the war end,
raised questions about whether the latest offer could materialize into
an actual pause in fighting.
Hamas official Taher al-Nunu said that the militant group was “ready and
serious regarding reaching an agreement.”
He said Hamas was “ready to accept any initiative that clearly leads to
the complete end to the war.”
A Hamas delegation is expected to meet with Egyptian and Qatari
mediators in Cairo on Wednesday to discuss the proposal, according to an
Egyptian official. The official spoke on condition of anonymity, because
he wasn't authorized to discuss the talks with the media.
Israel and Hamas disagree on how war should end
Throughout the nearly 21-month-long war, ceasefire talks between Israel
and Hamas have repeatedly faltered over whether the war should end as
part of any deal.
Hamas has said that it's willing to free the remaining 50 hostages, less
then half of whom are said to be alive, in exchange for a complete
Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and an end to the war.
Israel says it will only agree to end the war if Hamas surrenders,
disarms and exiles itself, something the group refuses to do.
An Israeli official said that the latest proposal calls for a 60-day
deal that would include a partial Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and a
surge in humanitarian aid to the territory. The mediators and the U.S.
would provide assurances about talks on an end to the war, but Israel
isn't committing to that as part of the latest proposal, the official
said.
The official wasn't authorized to discuss the details of the proposed
deal with the media, so spoke on condition of anonymity.
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The sun sets over damaged buildings in the Gaza Strip, seen from
southern Israel, Tuesday, July 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)
It wasn't clear how many hostages would be freed as part of the
agreement, but previous proposals have called for the release of
about 10.
Israel has yet to publicly comment on Trump's announcement. On
Monday, Trump is set to host Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu for talks at the White House, days after Ron Dermer, a
senior Netanyahu adviser, held discussions with top U.S. officials
about Gaza, Iran and other matters.
Trump issues another warning
On Tuesday, Trump wrote on social media that Israel had "agreed to
the necessary conditions to finalize the 60 Day CEASEFIRE, during
which time we will work with all parties to end the War.”
“I hope, for the good of the Middle East, that Hamas takes this
Deal, because it will not get better — IT WILL ONLY GET WORSE,” he
said.
Trump’s warning may find a skeptical audience with Hamas. Even
before the expiration of the war’s longest ceasefire in March, Trump
has repeatedly issued dramatic ultimatums to pressure Hamas to agree
to longer pauses in the fighting that would see the release of more
hostages and a return of more aid to Gaza’s civilian populace.
Still, Trump views the current moment as a potential turning point
in the brutal conflict that has left more than 56,000 dead in the
Palestinian territory. The Gaza Health Ministry doesn't
differentiate between civilians and combatants in its death count,
but says that more than half of the dead are women and children.
The war began on Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas-led militants attacked
southern Israel, killing 1,200 people and taking roughly 250
hostages.
The war has left the coastal Palestinian territory in ruins, with
much of the urban landscape flattened in the fighting. More than 90%
of Gaza's 2.3 million population has been displaced, often multiple
times. And the war has sparked a humanitarian crisis in Gaza,
pushing hundreds of thousands of people toward hunger.
___
Bassem Mroue reported from Beirut. Josef Federman contributed to
this report from Jerusalem.
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