On Friday, Israel decided to send a delegation to Doha to continue negotiations on a possible deal that includes a ceasefire and prisoner exchange, after it described an offer made by the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) to conclude an agreement in stages as unrealistic, while Washington expressed cautious optimism for the success of the talks.

Commenting on the offer made by Hamas to mediators in Egypt and Qatar, the Israeli Prime Minister's Office said that the movement's demands are still unrealistic.

The Diwan added that an Israeli team will head to Doha to continue negotiations after the end of the discussions in this regard in the Mini Ministerial Council for Political and Security Affairs.

Al Jazeera's correspondent said earlier today that the Israeli mini-ministerial council is meeting at the Ministry of Defense headquarters to discuss Hamas' response to the exchange deal.

Israeli media reported that the War Council would hold another session on Friday to discuss Hamas’ response to the deal.

For his part, a correspondent for the American news website Axios quoted informed Israeli officials as saying that Netanyahu is expected to hold a consultative meeting on Saturday evening or Sunday morning to decide on expanding the Israeli delegation’s mandate before it leaves for Qatar.

The sources added that the large gaps between the two parties require additional flexibility on the part of Israel, noting that this is not possible without expanding the powers of the negotiating delegation.

For its part, Israeli Channel 12 quoted senior political officials that the gaps in the negotiation deal are very large, including Hamas’s insistence on the return of residents to the northern Gaza Strip.

Agreement in stages

Earlier Friday, sources told Al Jazeera that the proposal presented by Hamas to the mediators stipulates a ceasefire in 3 stages, each lasting 42 days.

It added that Hamas stipulated in the first stage that the Israeli occupation forces withdraw from Al-Rashid Street and the Salah al-Din axis for the return of the displaced and the passage of aid to the Gaza Strip.

It also offered, in exchange for the release of every living female prisoner, the release of 50 Palestinian prisoners, 30 of whom were serving life sentences. Israel estimates the number of its prisoners held by the resistance in Gaza at about 130, but it is likely that 32 of them were killed.

The sources added to Al Jazeera that, with the start of the second phase, Hamas stipulated that a permanent ceasefire be declared before any exchange of its captured soldiers.

Hamas's proposal also included starting the comprehensive reconstruction process for the Gaza Strip and ending the siege, with the start of the third phase.

In an interview with Al Jazeera, Hamas leader Osama Hamdan said that the proposal presented by the movement to the mediators is realistic and characterized by high flexibility, adding that the Israeli occupation is trying to circumvent the ceasefire file.

Cautious optimism

In reactions, the White House said that the Hamas movement’s proposal certainly falls within the framework of the deal that has been worked on over the past months.

The White House expressed cautious optimism that the ceasefire talks in Gaza are moving in the right direction.

The New York Times also quoted an American official as saying that Hamas' response was within the framework agreed upon at the recent Paris meeting.

For his part, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said that his country is working intensively with Egypt, Qatar and Israel to fill the remaining gaps regarding the “hostage exchange” agreement, stressing during a press conference with his Austrian counterpart in Vienna that Washington will work every effort to complete this deal.

Blinken added that there are talks now taking place regarding the deal, and that Israel is sending a negotiating team to follow up on this matter, which reflects the possibility and necessity of reaching an agreement, as he put it.

In this context, the Chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee and seven members of the US Senate called on Qatar to redouble its efforts to ensure the release of all “hostages.”

Since the end of the latest rounds of negotiations in Paris and Cairo, Washington has been offering a truce for a period of 6 weeks during which the Israeli prisoners will be released.

Meanwhile, Israelis demonstrated on Friday in front of the headquarters of the army command complex and security services in Tel Aviv to demand the return of Israeli prisoners detained in the Gaza Strip.

Activists published pictures of demonstrators chanting slogans demanding that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu conduct an exchange deal.

Source: Al Jazeera