Israel Offers Hamas Leader Safe Passage in Exchange for Hostages and Gaza Control
In a bid to break the deadlock in the ongoing conflict with Hamas, Israel has offered safe passage out of Gaza to the group’s leader, Yahya Sinwar, in exchange for the release of hostages and relinquishment of control over the strip, Bloomberg reports, citing a senior Israeli official.
“I’m ready to provide safe passage to Sinwar, his family, whoever wants to join him,” said Gal Hirsch, Israel’s hostage envoy, in an interview on Tuesday. “We want the hostages back. We want demilitarization, de-radicalization of course – a new system that will manage Gaza.”
Hirsch presented this proposal a day and a half ago, but declined to disclose Hamas’ response. He reiterated Israel’s willingness to release prisoners as part of any deal.
The US, Qatar, and Egypt are working on a new cease-fire proposal, but according to Hirsch, Hamas has so far insisted on dictating terms rather than negotiating. It remains uncertain whether Hamas would accept the offer concerning Sinwar, particularly given Israel’s history of targeting operatives abroad.
Israel has not claimed responsibility for the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh on July 31 in Tehran, despite Iran’s accusation that Israel carried out the bombing that killed Haniyeh in a Tehran guesthouse.
The stakes in this conflict are high, with Israelis viewing Sinwar as both the mastermind behind the October 7 attacks that triggered the war and a symbol of Palestinian armed struggle.
Further fueling doubts about the feasibility of the safe-passage offer, Hirsch has vowed a “Munich-type response” targeting those responsible for killing six Israeli hostages in late August. This refers to Israel’s extended assassination campaign following the 1972 Munich Olympics massacre of 11 Israeli athletes.
On Tuesday, the Hamas-run health ministry reported 19 deaths in an overnight airstrike on Mawasi, near the city of Khan Younis. The war has claimed the lives of some 41,000 Palestinians, according to health authorities in Gaza.
Hamas has killed roughly 1,200 people and taken 250 hostages during its October 7, 2023 assault of southern Israel.
