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Israeli sources expressed on Sunday their optimism about the possibility of reaching a prisoner exchange agreement between Tel Aviv and the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) before the month of Ramadan, at a time when progress was reported after a new round of talks in Paris.

The official Broadcasting Authority quoted Israeli sources as saying that there is optimism that understandings will be reached before the month of Ramadan, which begins in less than two weeks.

The Israeli Broadcasting Corporation also quoted a security official as saying that the potential deal would not prevent the ground operation in Rafah, south of the Gaza Strip.

For its part, Israeli Channel 12 quoted a source as saying that there is great optimism about reaching an agreement on a possible prisoner exchange deal.

The Israeli channel said that the War Council decided to allow an Israeli delegation to go to Qatar in the coming days to continue talks on the exchange deal, thus confirming information revealed by other Israeli officials and media yesterday.

Last night, the War Council met after the Israeli delegation returned from talks in Paris to discuss a possible agreement on a new truce and prisoner exchange.

On Friday, the head of the Israeli Foreign Intelligence Service (Mossad), David Barnea, participated in a new round of talks regarding a possible agreement that includes a prisoner exchange and an expanded truce in Gaza, along with the head of the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), William Burns, and the Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdul Rahman Al Thani, and the head of Egyptian intelligence, Abbas Kamel.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said yesterday that his government is working to reach an additional agreement to liberate the detainees. He added that for this purpose he sent a delegation to Paris and will discuss the next steps of the negotiations, vowing in the meantime to proceed with his plans to invade Rafah, which is crowded with displaced people.

Netanyahu added that the combination of military pressure and what he called firm negotiations would lead to the recovery of detainees, the elimination of Hamas, and the achievement of all the goals of the war, as he put it.

Commenting on the Paris talks, National Security Advisor Tzachi Hanegbi said that there was likely room to “move forward toward an agreement,” without giving further details.

But Hanegbi said that the potential agreement does not mean the end of the war, which is the same position that Netanyahu and members of his government have repeatedly echoed.

Demonstration in Tel Aviv against Netanyahu (Reuters)

Demonstrations against Netanyahu

Last night, the Israeli police suppressed a demonstration in central Tel Aviv demanding the conclusion of a prisoner exchange agreement, under the pretext that it is illegal and disrupts public security.

Al Jazeera's correspondent reported that the Israeli police arrested 18 demonstrators, including the organizer of a demonstration calling for the overthrow of Benjamin Netanyahu's government and holding early elections.

Haifa, Eilat, and Beersheba witnessed similar demonstrations that coincided with the continued movement of families of Israelis detained in Gaza to demand that the government conclude an immediate prisoner exchange deal.

Tel Aviv estimates the number of Israeli prisoners remaining with the resistance in the Gaza Strip at about 130, and it is likely that 30 of them were killed.

New frame

Meanwhile, Reuters quoted a source familiar with the talks as saying that the Paris meetings concluded with “broad lines” that could eventually lead to a truce in Gaza.

For its part, the Washington Post quoted two sources familiar with the Paris talks that American, Egyptian and Qatari officials presented a more detailed framework for a possible agreement between Israel and Hamas.

The newspaper said that the new detailed framework proposes that Hamas, in the first stage, release 40 Israeli prisoners in exchange for the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners and a truce in Gaza for a period of 6 weeks.

The new proposals include the start of the return of some residents of the northern Gaza Strip to their areas, according to what was stated in the newspaper’s report.

The Washington Post reported that the previous agreement framework also included a six-week truce, but it was not as detailed as the new framework that was presented in Friday's talks in Paris.

The source told the American newspaper that the new Paris meetings allowed for progress that would lead to more serious negotiations on a new agreement in the next few days.

In the talks that took place weeks ago in Paris and then in Cairo, a framework was reached, and the mediators received a response from Israel and Hamas, and Tel Aviv rejected the movement’s demands and considered them unrealistic.

Hamas and other factions stressed that any agreement must lead to an end to the aggression and the withdrawal of the Israeli occupation forces from the Gaza Strip, which is what the Netanyahu government has rejected so far.

Source: Al Jazeera + agencies