Israeli hostages' families decry ‘safe exit’ proposal as cheap trick

JERUSALEM

Families of Israeli hostages have criticized a proposal for a "safe exit" put forward by Gal Hirsch, Israel's coordinator for prisoners and missing persons, to the US government aimed at negotiating a hostage exchange with the Palestinian group Hamas.

In a statement on Thursday evening, the families said: “Hirsch has once again chosen to engage in a cynical and costly manipulation at the expense of the hostages, their families, and the people of Israel.”

According to Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation reports, Israel has proposed to Washington a new plan to end the war in Gaza, which includes the simultaneous release of all hostages and a "safe exit" for Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar from Gaza.

The families described the proposal as a ruse designed to undermine a new American initiative for the release of hostages and to halt the war in Gaza.

They accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government of abandoning the 101 hostages believed to be held in Gaza, asserting that Hirsch is working behind the scenes to sabotage international efforts for their return.

“This fraudulent process is part of a long series of steps coordinated by Netanyahu and his partners, proving once again that Netanyahu has decided to abandon the hostages,” they said.

The families condemned this as an unprecedented moral and ethical failure by the state.

Israeli media reported that the Israeli proposal includes releasing all hostages at once, providing a "safe exit" for Sinwar and those who wish to leave with him, releasing an unspecified number of Palestinian prisoners, disarming Gaza, and implementing an administrative framework to end the war.

The report noted that Hirsch met with the families of the hostages to inform them of the new proposal but did not specify when the meeting took place.

He indicated that the outlines of the proposal were presented during discussions with US officials at the White House and the State Department.

Neither the Israeli Prime Minister's Office nor Hamas has commented on the proposal.

Indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas have been ongoing for months, facilitated by Egypt and Qatar with US support, but have stalled due to Netanyahu's insistence on maintaining control over key territories, while Hamas demands a full Israeli military withdrawal.

Currently, Israel holds approximately 9,500 Palestinian prisoners, while Hamas says that 101 Israeli hostages are in Gaza, with reports of many killed in indiscriminate Israeli airstrikes.

Israel has continued a brutal offensive on Gaza following a cross-border attack by the Palestinian group Hamas on Oct. 7 last year, despite a UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate cease-fire.

Nearly 41,300 people, mostly women and children, have since been killed and more than 95,500 injured, according to local health authorities.

The Israeli onslaught has displaced almost the entire population of the territory amid an ongoing blockade that has led to severe shortages of food, clean water, and medicine.

Israel faces accusations of genocide at the International Court of Justice for its actions in Gaza.

*Writing by Ikram Kouachi in Ankara