Israel to continue ceasefire talks in Doha on Sunday despite ‘unacceptable’ latest amendments from Hamas

Israel has confirmed that talks over a deal for the release of hostages and a ceasefire in Gaza will continue in Doha on Sunday despite Hamas’s latest proposed amendments being “unacceptable”, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office has said.

Hamas said on Friday it had responded positively to a US-backed ceasefire proposal, and on Saturday issued a statement signalling their intention to negotiate and for discussions to begin “immediately”.

However, revisions were requested surrounding guarantees that the ceasefire will last beyond 60 days, the mechanisms for distributing humanitarian aid, and the timelines and extent of Israeli withdrawals.

“The changes that Hamas seeks to make to the Qatari proposal were conveyed to us last night and are not acceptable to Israel,” Netanyahu’s office said late Saturday night, while confirming that an Israeli negotiating delegation will still fly to Doha despite the unacceptable terms.

US President Donald Trump, who has voiced optimism that a 60-day ceasefire could lead to the end of the war, will host Netanyahu in Washington DC on Monday, and is reportedly keen that a ceasefire announcement can be reached to coincide with the prime minister’s visit.

The Trump administration hopes the truce could form a platform for broader regional stabilisation and the expansion of the Abraham Accords.

Netanyahu has repeatedly stressed the importance of permanently disarming Hamas as a necessary condition to lasting peace, a position which the terrorist group, who is thought to be still holding 20 living hostages, has so far refused to discuss.

Hamas has often initially voiced public acceptance for ceasefire proposals before privately adding significant amendments or conditions during the final negotiation stages.

Israelis hold posters of hostages and US flags as they march to demand freedom of all of the hostages held in Gaza, May 13, 2025 (Credit: ITAI RON/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images) [Missing Credit]

Hamas triggered the Israel-Hamas war on October 7, 2023, after it launched a surprise attack on communities across southern Israel, massacring more than 1,200 people and taking some 250 people hostage.

Nearly 21 months later, Israel’s military retaliation on the enclave has killed over 57,000 Palestinians, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Ministry of Health. Israel estimates that about 20,000 of those killed during the fighting were Hamas terrorists, including the vast majority of the organisation’s leadership.