Hamas is demanding the end of Israel’s offensive and withdrawal from Gaza before releasing any hostages.
By Debbie Weiss, Algemeiner
Hamas is said to have rejected a deal for a two-month ceasefire in which the hostages would be freed in exchange for the release of Palestinians security prisoners, the Associated Press reported on Tuesday, citing a senior Egyptian official.
The unnamed official said Hamas had “rejected the proposal and is insisting that no more hostages will be released until Israel ends its offensive and withdraws from Gaza,” the report said.
Egypt and Qatar are currently crafting a phased proposal to reconcile the sticking points, the official said.
The news poses a devastating blow to the families of the hostages, who have ramped up efforts in recent days urging Israeli officials to secure a deal with Hamas.
136 hostages remain in Gaza, including two babies, but the IDF has confirmed the deaths of 28 of those. More than 250 people were abducted to Gaza during Hamas’ assault on October 7, during which more than 1200 people were murdered.
On Sunday evening, relatives of the hostages barricaded themselves across from the Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s residence in Jerusalem. The following day, family members disrupted a meeting of the Knesset’s Finance Committee, holding signs with the message, “You will not sit here while they die there.”
In a Knesset lobby for victims of sexual violence on Tuesday morning, former hostages provided testimony about the abuse endured during captivity.
Shani Yerushalmi, the sister of Eden Yerushalmi who was kidnapped from the Nova music festival, called on the Israeli government to take action now because “time was of the essence for all the hostages.”
“Does it not bother the prime minister and the cabinet that they will return pregnant and past the point of being able to terminate the pregnancy?” Yerushalmi said.
Aviva Siegel, who was released after 51 days in captivity, said Hamas terrorists had turned the hostages in the Gaza Strip into “dolls with whom they could do what they wanted, when they wanted.”
“The terrorists bring inappropriate clothes, clothes for dolls and turn the girls into their dolls,” she added. “There wasn’t a minute that we didn’t experience abuse – and they are still there. It’s beyond comprehension.”
She added that the male hostages were similarly treated like “puppets.”
Siegel’s daughter, Shir, said her mother’s testimony was “only the tip of the iceberg.” Her father and Siegel’s husband, Keith, is still in Hamas captivity.
Shiri Elbag, the mother of hostage Liri Elbag, acknowledged that Siegel and the other released hostages were only saying a “fraction of what transpired there because they want to protect us.”
Elbag went on to say that she tries not to think about a scenario in which her daughter and others might be pregnant.
A day earlier, Elbag returned from a visit to London where she met with British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Foreign Secretary David Cameron.
The parents of another hostage, Daniela Gilboa, also traveled to London.
Sunak said he rejected “any attempt to draw an equivalence between Israel’s actions and those of the terrorists.”
“There is a horrific irony in Israel, of all countries being accused of genocide. Under my leadership, this country will always stand by the right of our friend and ally Israel to defend itself within the framework of international law. Am Yisroel chai,” he said.
Cameron denounced Hamas’ hostage-taking as “barbaric.”
“As a dad of children of a similar age, I can only imagine the turmoil they are going through. The UK is doing everything it can to ensure all the hostages, including the two British nationals, are released as soon as possible,” he said following his meeting with the parents.