Hamas Ceasefire Draft Has 'Non-Negotiable Demands'-Snr Israeli Official

Israel's Channel 13 reporting that according to an unnamed senior Israeli official, the draft ceasefire proposal offered by Hamas has points that are "tantamount to "non-negotiable demands" from Israel." The report adds that for the Israeli gov't, "The current dilemma is whether to reject these demands outright or engage in negotiations to soften them." These comments come after a Reuters article claiming details of a 135-day ceasefire that the group claims could bring an end to the war.

• As we noted in our earlier bullet (see 0854GMT), the outcome of the proposal is not certain. For PM Benjamin Netanyahu and his national unity gov't, there is growing international pressure to engage in a ceasefire. Netanyahu has recently finished speaking with US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, who is in the Middle East on the four-month anniversary of the Hamas attacks. With the US, Israel's staunchest international ally, now pushingfor a 'humanitarian pause' to the Israel-Hamas war.
• However, Netanyahu's ultranationalist coalition partners remain vocally committed to the full eradication of Hamas (and in some cases full Israeli occupation of Gaza). Without their support, his gov't collapses and at present polls show his Likud party losing significant support to Benny Gantz's National Unity party. As such, making a deal with Hamas that is judged 'too soft' could prove an impossibility for the gov't.