Hamas seeks changes in US Gaza proposal

CAIRO/JERUSALEM: Hamas said on Saturday it was seeking amendments to a U.S.-backed proposal for a temporary ceasefire with Israel in Gaza, but President Donald Trump’s envoy rejected the group’s response as “totally unacceptable.”

The Palestinian militant group said it was willing to release 10 living hostages and hand over the bodies of 18 dead in exchange for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli prisons. But Hamas reiterated demands for an end to the war and withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza, conditions Israel has rejected.

A Hamas official described the group’s response to the proposals from Trump’s special Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff as “positive” but said it was seeking some amendments. The official did not elaborate on the changes being sought.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that while his government had agreed to Witkoff’s outline, Hamas was continuing its rejection of the plan. “Israel will continue its action for the return of our hostages and the defeat of Hamas,” he said in a statement. Hamas said in a statement: “This response aims to achieve a permanent ceasefire, a complete withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, and to ensure the flow of humanitarian aid to our people in the Strip.”

Palestinians killed while heading to Gaza aid hub

At least 31 people were killed and over 150 were wounded on Sunday while on their way to receive food in the Gaza Strip, according to health officials and multiple witnesses.

The witnesses said Israeli forces fired on crowds around a kilometre from an aid site run by an Israeli-backed foundation.

The army in a brief statement said it was “currently unaware of injuries caused by (Israeli military) fire within the humanitarian aid distribution site. The matter is still under review”. The foundation — promoted by Israel and the United States — said in a statement it delivered aid “without incident” early Sunday. It has denied previous accounts of chaos and gunfire around its sites, which are in Israeli military zones where independent access is limited. Gaza’s Health Ministry said 31 people were killed and 170 others were wounded.

The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation’s aid distribution has been marred by chaos in its first week of operations, and multiple witnesses have said Israeli troops fired on crowds near its delivery sites.

Before Sunday, at least six people had been killed and more than 50 wounded, according to local health officials. The foundation says the private security contractors guarding its sites have not fired on the crowds. Israel’s military has acknowledged firing warning shots on previous occasions.