Cameron urges Hamas to accept ‘very generous’ ceasefire offer

Hamas is standing in the way of a “very generous” ceasefire agreement with Israel in which kidnapped hostages could be released in return for a 40-day truce in the Gaza Strip, according to Britain’s foreign secretary.

Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Saudi Arabia, Lord Cameron of Chipping Norton said the current proposal for a truce could also include the release of thousands of Palestinian prisoners in exchange for those captured and taken to Gaza during the October 7 attacks.

The Palestinian militant group has been given “a very generous offer of a sustained 40 days ceasefire, the release of potentially thousands of Palestinian prisoners, in return for the release of these hostages,” Cameron said.

“I hope Hamas accepts the proposal in front of them,” he added, saying that Israel’s war with the group won’t end “until all the hostages are released”.

He spoke after joining foreign ministers from the US, Europe and the Middle East in Riyadh to push for a last-ditch ceasefire in Gaza before any Israeli military operation in Rafah takes place.

Israel’s government has previously vowed to assault the southern city near the border with Egypt which it claims is Hamas’s last stronghold in Gaza but is also crowded with more than a million Palestinians who have fled the fighting.

Hamas has also sent a delegation, led by the head of the group’s negotiating team Khalil al-Hayya, to Cairo to respond to Israel’s proposal for a ceasefire of up to six weeks and the release of Palestinian prisoners in exchange for some 40 Israeli hostages who remain in Gaza — out of more than 200 who were kidnapped on October 7.

According to the New York Times, citing Israeli officials, the deal could see the release of only 33 of around 40 hostages who are still believed to be alive in Gaza.

Antony Blinken, the US secretary of state, also noted today that “Hamas has before it a proposal that is extraordinarily generous on the part of Israel. And at this moment the only thing standing between the people of Gaza and a ceasefire is Hamas.”

“I hope they make the right choice,” he said.

A Hamas official was reported to have told AFP that there were “no major issues … regarding the contents” of Israel’s proposal. However, Izzat al-Risheq, a Hamas politburo official, denied this and said that “the proposal is still in the stages of being studied”.

Hamas has previously insisted that the only ceasefire they will accept is a permanent end to the war and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip, but the threat of an imminent attack on Rafah has increased pressure on them to accept a truce in talks mediated by Qatar and Egypt.

Sameh Shoukry, Egypt’s foreign minister, said on Monday that he was “hopeful” of progress because the latest proposal “has taken into account the positions of both sides and has tried to extract moderation”. He added: “There is a proposal on the table [and it is] up to the two sides to consider and accept.”

Those assembled in Riyadh also discussed the future of Gaza after the war, which has left a security vacuum and much of the territory’s buildings damaged or destroyed.

The foreign secretary reiterated Britain’s long-standing position that the goal must be a state for the Palestinian people that “gives them the dignity of statehood” — but also guarantees Israeli security.

But he added that Hamas must leave Gaza for a two-state solution to become a reality.

“Hamas are not currently in favour of a two-state solution. They are in favour of a no-Israel solution,” he said.

Espen Barth Eide, the Norwegian foreign minister, told the forum that “the road to a solution will take time,” adding that the status quo that existed on “October 6, the day before October 7, is not a solution.”

Arab countries who will be asked to fund reconstruction in Gaza and possibly commit troops for a peacekeeping mission there, have made their agreement conditional on a viable roadmap that leads to a Palestinian state, which is something that the Israeli government has so far rejected.

Blinken, who will travel to Israel on Tuesday, also urged Israel to do more to increase the flow of aid into the Gaza Strip, and added that the US has not yet seen “a plan that gives us confidence” for a long-anticipated military operation in Rafah that would protect civilians there.

The US military’s cost estimate to build a pier off Gaza to deliver humanitarian aid has risen to $320 million.

Meanwhile, Israeli airstrikes have continued on an almost nightly basis, with at least 27 Palestinians killed in overnight strikes on Rafah and Gaza City, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.

Blinken said that there had been “measurable progress in the last few weeks, including the opening of new crossings and increased volume of aid delivery to Gaza and within Gaza, and the building of the US maritime corridor”.

“But it is not enough”, he told foreign ministers at the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). “We still need to get more aid in and around Gaza.” He added that a ceasefire was “the most effective way” to alleviate the suffering in a war that has killed more than 34,000 Palestinians.

He also called for a strong regional front against Iran after an unprecedented direct exchange of fire between Israel and the Islamic Republic. “This attack highlights the acute and growing threat from Iran but also the imperative that we work together on integrated defence,” Blinken said.

Touting “greater peace”, Blinken announced talks with the GCC in the coming weeks on integrating military defence and boosting maritime security, an issue that has come to the fore since the Iran-backed Houthi militia in Yemen joined the fight against Israel, disrupting key sea routes.

Josep Borrell, the EU’s foreign policy chief, also told the meeting that several European countries would recognise the Palestinian state by the end of May, a symbolic move that is supported by Spain, the Republic of Ireland, Belgium, Slovenia and some other member states.

On Sunday Mahmoud Abbas, the president of the Palestinian Authority, called on the US to intervene to stop an Israeli ground attack on Rafah, which he said would come in the “next few days”.

American officials said that Israel had provided assurances that it would not enter the city until a plan to evacuate civilians had been discussed.

President Biden spoke about Rafah with Binyamin Netanyahu, Israel’s prime minister, on Sunday evening before the WEF event and “reiterated his clear position”, the White House said.