Israel offers new prisoner exchange deal: report

New Delhi, Dec 28 (IANS) Israel has proposed a new prisoner exchange deal to mediator Qatar, media reports said on Thursday.“The deal was offered to Qatar via the U.S, media reports from Israel said.Reportedly, the deal will first see Israel withdraw its troops from densely populated areas of the Gaza and allow far more aid to enter the enclave.“In the second phase, Hamas would release female Israeli captives, including female soldiers and the bodies of dead Israelis, as Israel retreats further into areas to be hashed out via Qatari and US mediation, the media reports said.The Israeli media has also reported that Hamas has so far rejected this proposal as it does not call for a full ceasefire while hostages are exchanged.During the temporary one week truce from November 24 to December 1, between Hamas and Israel, the Hamas released 105 hostages while 129 hostages still remain in Hamas captivity.The Israelis believe that out of the remaining 129 hostages, at least 20 hostages have died.There are thousands of Palestinians in Israeli jails who have been held without any trials and access to legal counsel.The Palestinian Prisoners Club has said that Israeli forces have arrested more than 4,655 people in the occupied West Bank since October 7.Israel launched a ground offensive inside Gaza on October 27 after Hamas attacked Israel in a surprise attack on October 7 in which 1200 Israelis were killed and over 200 were taken hostage.Since the outbreak of hostilities between Hamas and Israel, at least 21,110 Palestinians have been killed mostly being children and women while 53,688 Palestinians have been injured.--IANSint/dan

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