Israel said Sunday it endorsed a proposal to temporarily extend the truce in Gaza as a bridging measure after the first phase of its ceasefire with Hamas drew to a close.
The proposal, put forward by US President Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, would cover Ramzan, due to end late March, and Passover, lasting through mid-April, according to a statement from the Israeli prime minister’s office released just after midnight.
The first phase of a ceasefire deal between Israel and Palestinian group Hamas was set to expire over the weekend without any certainty as to the second phase, which is hoped to bring a more permanent end to the Gaza war.
Negotiations have so far been inconclusive, with the fate of hostages still held in Gaza and the lives of more than two million Palestinians hanging in the balance.
According to the Israeli statement, the extension would see half of the hostages still in Gaza released on the day the deal comes into effect, with the rest to be released at the end if agreement is reached on a permanent ceasefire.
There was no immediate response from Hamas, which earlier rejected the idea of an extension.
Israel’s backing of what it described as a US plan comes amid a flurry of warnings not to restart the war, which after 15 months devastated Gaza, displaced almost the entire population of the coastal strip and sparked a hunger crisis.
