(Reuters) – Palestinian Islamist group Hamas said on Monday it had agreed to a three-phased deal for a ceasefire and hostages-for-prisoners swap, although an Israeli official said the deal was not acceptable to Israel because terms had been “softened”.
The United States, which alongside Qatar and Egypt has played a mediation role in the talks, said it was studying the Hamas response and would discuss it with Middle East allies.
Based on details announced so far by Hamas officials and an official briefed on the talks, the deal that the Palestinian group said it had agreed to included the following:
PHASE ONE
– 42-day ceasefire period
– Hamas releases 33 Israeli hostages in return for Israel releasing Palestinians from Israeli jails.
– Israel partially withdraws troops from Gaza and allows free movement of Palestinians from south to north Gaza.
PHASE TWO
– Another 42-day period that features an agreement to restore a “sustainable calm” to Gaza, language that an official briefed on the talks said Hamas and Israel had agreed in order to take discussion of a “permanent ceasefire” off the table.
– The complete withdrawal of most Israeli troops from Gaza.
– Hamas releases Israeli reservists and some soldiers in return for Israel releasing Palestinians from jail.
PHASE THREE
– The completion of exchanging bodies and starting the implementation of reconstruction according to the plan overseen by Qatar, Egypt and the United Nations.
– Ending the complete blockade on the Gaza Strip.
(Reporting by Andrew Mills in Doha and Nafisa Eltahir and Nidal al-Mughrabi in Cairo; Editing by Edmund Blair and Josie Kao)
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