There was no immediate confirmation of that from Israel, Hamas or Qatar. In that deal, Israel freed three times the number of Palestinians from its security prisons and admitted more humanitarian aid to Gaza. Palestinian officials said Hamas was insisting on Israel calling off the offensive and withdrawing forces under any deal. Almost 30,000 Palestinians have been killed in the war, Gaza medical officials say. The Hamas raid of Oct. 7 killed 1,200 people in Israel, which has also lost 241 soldiers in Gaza ground fighting that followed, according to official tallies.

Source: The Hindu February 26, 2024 15:56 UTC