The “Safe Passage” Deal for Sinwar: “Good Only on Paper”

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“Good on paper, but the chances of Hamas and its leader accepting it are slim. They don’t want exile, even if the measure isn’t defined as exile or surrender.”

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This is how the Israeli newspaper “Haaretz” commented, in its Friday editorial, on the new proposal submitted to the U.S. administration, which calls for the release of all hostages held in Gaza in one phase, in exchange for ending the war.

The newspaper indicated that Israel would formally adopt the plan if Hamas showed willingness to move forward.

According to the newspaper, “Gal Hirsch, the government official responsible for hostage and missing persons recovery, presented a new proposal to the Biden administration regarding a deal with Hamas, under which all hostages held in Gaza would be released in one phase, in exchange for ending the war.”

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“Good on Paper” 

In its editorial, the newspaper stated that “the proposal is good on paper, but the chances of Hamas and Sinwar accepting it are extremely slim. They don’t want exile, even if the measure isn’t defined as exile or surrender.”

It added, “It can be assumed that Hirsch, a representative of a government seeking to make the war in the Gaza Strip an eternal war, is well aware of this. This might be the idea behind the initiative: to present a reasonable offer, but one that is highly unlikely to be accepted, in order to limit the criticism of the hostage families towards the government and mass protests.”

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The newspaper continued, “In actual reality, unlike what Hirsch and his superiors imagine, Israel is getting into deeper problems. It is setting traps on multiple fronts and may find itself in a difficult multi-front war, with heavy losses.”

The newspaper believes that “the collective admiration for the intelligence and operational capabilities that led to the destruction of communication devices of Hezbollah members, an operation attributed to Israel, could soon give way to painful cries of grief due to a punitive regional war.”

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The newspaper clarified, “Such a war can still be avoided through a genuine and brave deal with Hamas, one that imposes a high price but ultimately brings much greater benefits. This deal would not only allow the return of the hostages but also restore some calm along the northern border.”

According to the newspaper, “The Americans are working hard on the details of such a deal, but they face resistance not only from Yahya Sinwar (Hamas leader) but also from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.”

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Haaretz concluded, “Just before the entire region ignites, Israel must fulfill its moral duty, support the deal proposed by the Americans, return the hostages home, and prevent a devastating war that would cost many Israeli lives.”

Hostage Families Speak Out 

For their part, Israeli hostage families commented on the Israeli proposal in a statement.

They said, “Once again, Gal Hirsch has chosen to conduct a cynical, cheap, and losing manipulation at the expense of the hostages, their families, and the people of Israel. This is a fraud aimed at derailing the new U.S. initiative to release the hostages and stop the war in Gaza.”

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They added, “While the government of Benjamin Netanyahu abandons 101 hostages in Hamas‘s death tunnels, Hirsch is working behind the negotiating team’s back and sabotaging an international initiative to return all the hostages home.”

According to the statement, “This manipulative act joins a long series of deals sabotaged by Netanyahu and his partners, proving once again that they have decided to abandon the hostages.”

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“Safe Passage” 

The newspaper reported that “as part of Hirsch’s proposal, Israel would agree to let Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, his family, and thousands of activists of his choice leave Gaza for a third country.”

The newspaper added, “According to the proposal, this move would not be defined as a surrender or exile, and it would allow Hamas leaders to depart through a safe corridor.”

It also noted that “the proposal would allow Israel to seek to end the fighting while enabling Sinwar to remain the head of Hamas, though he would theoretically lose his immediate influence over Gaza.”

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The newspaper clarified, “Once the Hamas leaders leave Gaza, a mechanism agreed upon would be set up to rebuild Gaza.”

The newspaper revealed that “Hirsch presented the proposal with the approval of the Israeli political leadership, amid difficulties in moving forward with the existing agreement. It is estimated that Israel would officially adopt the plan if Hamas showed willingness to move forward.”

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Additionally, the newspaper noted that “sources close to the initiative said that this step aims to break the impasse caused by the crisis in negotiations, which hampers progress towards a ceasefire and Gaza’s reconstruction.”

It added, “With the departure of Hamas leaders, a group of countries currently hesitant to engage would be expected to participate in Gaza’s reconstruction.”

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The same source indicated that “Hirsch presented the proposal during his visit to the U.S. last week, where he met with his American counterpart as well as senior officials from the White House and the State Department.”