Hamas on Monday rejected a new U.S.-backed ceasefire and hostage-release proposal as unworkable, saying that the framework delivered through Israeli negotiator Gershon Baskin and Dr. Bishara Bahbah is riddled with “traps and pitfalls” that undermine its credibility.

In comments to Asharq al Awsat, Hamas sources said the group remains focused on securing an agreement that guarantees a full end to the war, not what they described as a one-sided arrangement. They argued that the plan’s demand for the immediate release of all 48 hostages—including both the living and the dead—on the first day of the deal is unrealistic, citing cases where hostages were killed in areas now reduced to rubble or buried after Israeli operations. Extracting their bodies, Hamas said, would require halting Israeli military activity in contested zones.

The group further blasted the omission of Israeli withdrawals from critical choke points such as the Philadelphi Corridor, and the reopening of Rafah crossing. Hamas has insisted that any deal must include binding guarantees from the United States and other “guarantor countries” that Israel will move toward ending the conflict.

According to sources who spoke with The Jerusalem Post, the plan envisions Hamas freeing all hostages on day one in return for a personal assurance from President Donald Trump that hostilities would not resume until negotiations conclude. In exchange, Israel would release 2,000 to 3,000 Palestinian security prisoners—including convicted murderers—cancel its planned military operation in Gaza City, and begin talks on a comprehensive end to the war.

Israeli forces, however, would retain a limited presence in designated parts of Gaza throughout the truce.

Diplomatic sources acknowledged that Hamas is unlikely to accept terms that would strip it of leverage so quickly. “Hamas would essentially be giving up the hostages on day one in return for a presidential guarantee,” one source told the Post. “What happens if the negotiations collapse? Hamas would have lost all of its leverage.”

Still, Israeli officials said the government is weighing the offer seriously. A senior aide to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the proposal is under “very serious consideration,” though he conceded Hamas’s rejectionist stance makes progress improbable.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)