Hamas's response to the Israeli proposal: Ceasefire must come first.

In the midst of ongoing efforts to stop the ceasefire in Gaza, Hamas responded firmly to the recent Israeli proposal, emphasizing that its top priority is to end the war before any other discussions. In a joint statement published with other Palestinian factions on Telegram, they stressed that "ending the war first" is the fundamental demand, rejecting what they described as "exaggerating" the issue of the resistance's weapons, considering the focus on it an attempt to circumvent the essence of the matter. This development comes after Hamas sent a delegation to Qatar to continue discussions on the ongoing war, while in Cairo in recent days, they discussed the proposed conditions within the new ceasefire agreement, including the release of between 8 to 10 Israeli hostages held in the sector. Despite this progress, the major obstacle remains the disagreement over whether Israel will agree to end its war completely and withdraw its forces from Gaza as part of any final agreement. The Israeli proposal included clauses that Hamas considers essential and non-negotiable, notably the demand to disarm the movement, which is categorically rejected by the resistance leadership. Simultaneously, as negotiations stall, Israel has escalated its pressure on the sector, blocking humanitarian aid since the collapse of the recent ceasefire in March and expanding its military operations by controlling wide areas of Gaza. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz recently warned that military operations will soon expand to include most areas of the sector, a move that could complicate the chances of reaching a near agreement. The previous agreement that came into effect on January 19 resulted in the release of 33 Israeli detainees - eight of whom had died - in exchange for about 1800 Palestinian prisoners from occupation prisons. Nevertheless, 58 Israelis are still held by Palestinian resistance in Gaza, with Israeli army estimates indicating that 34 of them have died. Amid the pressure of hostages and the escalation of operations, negotiations become more complicated, while Hamas sticks to its position: no agreement without ending the war first.