Israel proposes new deal seeking release of all hostages, ending war in Gaza: Report

Israel has proposed a framework for a new deal with the Hamas militants sayingthat it would end fighting in the Gaza Strip andoffersafe passage out of the Palestinianenclave for the group's leader Yahya Sinwar and his associates if they release all hostages at once, according to a report by KAN, the Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation (IPBC).

According to the report, Israel has proposed that it would also release all Palestinian prisoners being held in Israeli jails, demilitarise the Gaza Strip, and place a new system of governance in Gaza.

The report stated that a government point man on the hostages, Gal Hirsch, told the families of hostages that the proposal was presented in a meeting with US officials from the White House and State Department last week.

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The report, citing sources who met with Hirsch, said that the proposal is called a "safe passage deal".

'A secondary plan'

An anonymous Israeli official told Kan that the plan has been proposed as "Plan B".

“In light of the difficulties in the negotiations and the ticking clock on the lives of the hostages, we would like to propose a secondary plan that would shorten the stages, and allow for a faster deal,” the official reportedly said.

The official added, “This will happen if Sinwar leaves [Gaza] and brings about an end to the war. This will allow us tomeet the goals of the war, and for the leadership of Hamas in Gaza to leave to a safe place.”

Notably, it is not the first time a proposal has come into the limelight to release all hostages in one go in return for a complete end ofwar.

Israel attacked southern Lebanon

As the war continues, Israel on Thursday (Sep 19) bombed specific locations in southern Lebanon in overnight attacks. The Israeli military said that they struck six Hezbollah "terrorist infrastructure sites" and a weapons storage facility.

It comes just a day after pagers and walkie-talkies used by the Iran-backed group Hezbollah exploded, leading to Lebanon's deadliest day since cross-border fighting started nearly a year ago.

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(With inputs from agencies)