TEL AVIV, September 19. /TASS/. Israel has conveyed to the United States a new proposal for a deal on the release of hostages held in the Gaza Strip, the Kan radio station reported.

As said, deal terms include the one-time release of all those kidnapped in exchange for the safe exit of the Chairman of the Hamas Political Bureau Yahya Sinwar and his entourage from the Palestinian enclave.

According to the Kan radio station, the new Israeli plan also envisages the release of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails, the demilitarization of the enclave and the establishment of a new power mechanism in Gaza, as well as the end of the military operation in the Strip. Kan reported, citing sources, that Gal Hirsch, coordinator for the captives and the missing, has recently met with the hostages’ relatives. Hirsch informed them about conveying the proposal to the US representatives during the Washington meeting held last week.

A senior Israeli official, who on condition of anonymity told the radio station that "the difficulties that occurred during the negotiations" made Israel put forward a plan B, which would allow an agreement to be concluded "as soon as possible," as well as involve "reduction of the [deal] stages" for the sake of hostages’ immediate releasing. "This will happen if Sinwar withdraws [from the Gaza Strip] and ends the war," Kan quoted the official as saying. He also noted that the plan would "allow Israel to achieve the goals of the war" and enable the Hamas leadership to "successfully withdraw to safety" from the Gaza Strip.

On September 10, Gal Hirsch said in an interview with Bloomberg that Israel proposed letting Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar safely from the Gaza Strip in exchange for releasing hostages Hamas is holding and for its ceding control over the enclave. The next day, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galant said Israel would find the Hamas leader dead or alive.

Tensions flared up again in the Middle East on October 7, 2023, when militants from the Gaza Strip-based radical Palestinian movement Hamas staged a surprise attack on Israeli territory from Gaza, killing residents of Israeli border settlements and taking over 250 hostages, including women, children and the elderly. In response, Israel launched a military operation in Gaza with the aim of destroying the military and political structure of Hamas and freeing all those kidnapped. According to Israeli authorities, today Hamas is still holding more than 100 hostages.