Netanyahu reverses on key Israeli concession in ceasefire talks

By Jeremy Diamond, CNN

Jerusalem (CNN) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has reversed on a key Israeli concession in ceasefire negotiations, demanding that armed men be barred from returning to northern Gaza during an eventual ceasefire, an Israeli source familiar with the talks told CNN.

Israel had previously agreed to allow Palestinians unrestricted access to northern Gaza during an eventual ceasefire, but the prime minister told his negotiating team this week to demand that armed men be barred from northern Gaza as part of any ceasefire and hostage deal, the source said.

The new demand could potentially upend progress in hostage negotiations and raises further questions about Netanyahu’s commitment to Israel’s own proposal for a deal that has become the basis for detailed negotiations.

Last week, a US official told CNN that a framework agreement was “in place” and an Israeli official said that Netanyahu had authorized his negotiators to enter into detailed negotiations, signaling a potential breakthrough. Talks resumed in the Qatari capital Doha last Friday. Over the weekend, Hamas agreed to compromise on a major sticking point for Israel, that the Jewish state commit to a permanent ceasefire in Gaza before signing an agreement.

But a statement by the Israeli prime minister’s office on Sunday cast doubt on whether the deal would progress, laying out several “principles” Israel is not prepared to abandon, including resumed fighting in Gaza “until all of objectives of the war have been achieved.”

Israel launched its war on Gaza nine months ago, in response to Hamas’ October 7 attack that killed 1,200 people and took more than 250 others hostage, according to Israeli authorities. The war has left swathes of the enclave unrecognizable, displaced almost the entire population and killed more than 38,000 people, according to the health ministry there. Israel had said it wouldn’t end the war until all hostages are freed and Hamas is eliminated.

CNN has reached out to the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office for comment.

Previous reporting by CNN’s Nadeen Ebrahim, Ibrahim Dahman, Eugenia Yosef and Tim Lister.

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