Hamas said it is ready for a comprehensive Gaza deal in which all Israeli hostages will be released, in response to a demand by US President Donald Trump.
Mr Trump on Wednesday suggested the war in Gaza could end if the militant group released all remaining Israeli hostages held in the enclave.
"Tell Hamas to immediately give back all 20 hostages (not two or five or seven), and things will change rapidly. It will end," Mr Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
Hamas issued a statement in response. "We say to President Trump: Hamas agreed on August 18 to the mediators’ proposal, which was originally based on the [US envoy Steve] Witkoff proposal and [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu has not responded to it until now," the group said.
"We also expressed readiness for a comprehensive deal under which all hostages would be released in exchange for an agreed number of our prisoners in the occupation’s jails, in a way that achieves an end to the war and withdrawal of the occupation."
Mr Netanyahu's office criticised Hamas's comments. "Unfortunately, this is yet another spin by Hamas with nothing new in it," it said in a statement.
It reiterated that the war in Gaza would only end if all hostages were released, Hamas was disarmed, the enclave was demilitarised and Israel established security control, and an alternative civilian government was established. "We affirm that Netanyahu is the real obstacle to exchange deals and a ceasefire … he wants a war with no end," Hamas said in its statement.
In August, the group agreed to a 60-day ceasefire proposal with Israel that includes the return of half of the hostages held in Gaza and the release of some Palestinian detainees from Israeli jails.
Mr Netanyahu said days later that Israel would immediately resume negotiations for the release of all hostages and an end to the war, but on terms acceptable to Israel, without agreeing to the deal put forward by mediators Qatar and Egypt based on a previous US proposal.
Heavy shelling has hit Gaza city this week after the Israeli military began mobilising more forces for an assault to reoccupy the enclave’s largest urban area. Israeli officials claim Gaza city remains a Hamas stronghold above a vast underground tunnel network, even after significant ground assaults earlier in the war.
The Israeli military has intensified air and ground attacks on the outskirts of the city, particularly in western neighbourhoods, forcing people to flee towards the coast, humanitarian groups said.
Since the war began with a Hamas-led attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, more than 63,700 Palestinians have been killed, including more than 2,300 who died while seeking aid.
