Hamas to review US ceasefire proposal as Arab, Muslim nations express support

Gaza, Sep 30 (IANS) Hamas has received a US-backed proposal aimed at ending the war in the Gaza Strip, presented by Qatari and Egyptian mediators, a Hamas source said.

The plan, which US President Donald Trump secured Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's backing earlier in the day, was delivered during a meeting in Doha. The Qatari prime minister and the head of Egypt's General Intelligence Service presented the plan to Hamas negotiators, the source said.

The Hamas delegation told mediators it would study the proposal "with sincere intent" before issuing an official response, according to the source.

Egypt's Al Qahera News TV, citing Egyptian security sources, confirmed the delivery of the US peace proposal to Hamas. The report said Egypt and other Arab countries made several amendments to the plan before presenting it to Hamas in Doha.

Earlier on Monday, US President Donald Trump said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had agreed to his broad Gaza peace plan. Trump added that, if Hamas accepted the proposal, it would require the release of all remaining hostages within 72 hours and called on the group to accept the terms.

Netanyahu, however, warned that Israel would "finish the job" against Hamas if the militants rejected the proposal.

The plan faced immediate opposition from Islamic Jihad, a Palestinian militant group allied with Hamas, which dismissed it as a "recipe for continued aggression" against the Palestinian people.

"Through this, Israel is attempting -- via the United States -- to impose what it could not achieve through war," the group said in a statement. "We consider the American-Israeli declaration a formula for igniting the region."

Meanwhile, the Palestinian Authority, based in the West Bank, welcomed the US proposal and expressed its readiness to "work with the United States, regional countries, and partners to end the Gaza war through a comprehensive agreement," Xinhua news agency reported quoting the official WAFA news.

The plan, the authority said, should ensure adequate humanitarian aid to Gaza, secure the release of hostages and prisoners, and establish mechanisms to protect the Palestinian people.

The foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, Jordan, the UAE, Indonesia, Pakistan, Türkiye, Qatar, and Egypt issued a joint statement late on Monday welcoming the US proposal.

The ministers praised the proposals to end the fighting, rebuild Gaza, prevent Palestinian displacement, and block the annexation of the West Bank.

They reaffirmed their commitment to work with the United States to secure a deal that guarantees unrestricted humanitarian aid to Gaza, the release of hostages, security for all sides, full Israeli withdrawal, reconstruction of Gaza, and a path toward a just two-state solution, integrating Gaza and the West Bank in line with international law.

--IANS

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