Can Bibi Be Forced to Sign Gaza Cease Fire Deal?
Hamas Agrees to Ceasefire Terms Amid Mediation Efforts
Aug. 19—Sources close to the White House say that President Donald Trump's Special Envoy Steve Witkoff is again working on pushing through a Gaza ceasefire and partial hostage release deal.
Yesterday, in a sudden turn in what has been months-long foot-dragging by Hamas—effectively playing into the hands of the Butcher of Gaza, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin "Bibi" Netanyahu—nitpicking over details in plans proffered by Witkoff through his fellow mediators Qatar and Egypt to secure a partial deal, Hamas agreed without reservation to a new proposal to release 10 living hostages and remains of dead hostages, in exchange for the release of Palestinian prisoners by the Israelis. An immediate 60-day ceasefire would be put into place, and Israeli forces would withdraw from parts of Gaza, while negotiations on a final peace deal got underway in earnest.
A senior Hamas official, Taher al-Nono, told Qatar's Al-Arabiya TV channel that the group has agreed to a ceasefire plan that includes U.S. guarantees to end the war. An Egyptian source confirmed to Reuters that the proposal outlines a path toward a comprehensive agreement and includes a 60-day ceasefire alongside the phased release of hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners.
Trump’s Position and Witkoff’s Push for Agreement
These sources said that the mediators got the green light from Witkoff to go with the plan, as President Trump posted a comment that he believed the only way to free the hostages was to totally destroy Hamas—echoing statements from Bibi, who has declared his intention to do just that with a full IDF occupation of Gaza, starting with the annihilation of Gaza City, described by some as Hamas's "last stronghold" and an area thought to contain many remaining hostages.
Witkoff, who has also worked up a proposal for the release of all hostages at once and the total removal of all IDF forces from Gaza, is said to believe that with Trump's approval, he could force Bibi to sign on to this new deal, which is almost identical to a plan submitted by Witkoff months ago that Netanyahu signed on to but Hamas stupidly rejected. The sources say that Witkoff wants to immediately stop the killing, stop Bibi's occupation plan—which no one but he and his circle of fanatics support and which the leadership of the IDF says is a costly waste of time and lives—in its tracks, and allow an immediate focus on relieving the starvation and humanitarian crisis which the whole world now sees in pictures across the internet.
Humanitarian Provisions and Prisoner Exchange
The agreement signed off on by Hamas also stipulates that once the deal takes effect, large-scale humanitarian aid—including fuel, water, electricity, hospital and bakery rehabilitation, and debris removal equipment—will be delivered immediately, coordinated by the UN, the Red Crescent, and other international organizations.
Under the proposal, the Rafah crossing will reopen in both directions, and an agreement on the exchange of remains stipulates that for each deceased Israeli, 10 Palestinian bodies will be released. The source emphasized that the deal is carefully coordinated and follows arrangements outlined in the January 19 accord, representing a significant step toward alleviating the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
Public Pressure Mounts as Israeli Response Pending
The mediators have submitted the signed-by-Hamas deal to the Israeli government, which has yet to comment. Nearly a million Israelis participated in a general strike Aug. 17, demanding a ceasefire and hostage release deal, and an end to one of the most savage wars in recent history. The strike was called by the hostage families, who say that Bibi plans on killing the remaining living hostages. It was denounced by Bibi as insignificant, even though it was one of the largest demos in Israeli history; he also called the demonstrators, including former hostages and hostage families, Hamas sympathizers.
Netanyahu, a bloodthirsty creature who would kill every Palestinian if he could get away with it, does not want to have any peace in Gaza except the peace of the graveyard. He has sabotaged negotiations, lying to both Witkoff and Trump, yet has so far been immune to Trump's public criticism. "Trump may have to jump through hoops to stop NATO's war against Russia in Ukraine," said a source. "But he could stop the war in Gaza with a few, choice sharp words demanding that Bibi sign on to the 60-day ceasefire and then negotiate in good faith. Trump is far more popular in Israel than Bibi. He could tell the Israelis to string Bibi up from a lamp post if he does not go along. And he could block all military aid to the IDF if this war is not stopped. But he has not done this yet.
"But as I am sure Steve [Witkoff, who has been heavily involved in negotiations with Russia] has told his boss, he needs Trump to get with the program," said the source. "Letting Bibi do whatever he wants in Gaza has already cost scores of thousands of lives."
It is expected that the Israeli government will respond to the negotiators' plan in the next couple of days.