Israel agrees to Gaza ceasefire extension after phase one period expires
Israel will adopt a proposal by US President Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy for an extension to the ceasefire in Gaza, the office of the Israeli prime minister has announced.
The plan by Steve Witkoff was for an extension lasting for the periods of Ramadan and Passover.
The holy month of Ramadan started on Friday and is usually between 29 and 30 days. The Jewish holiday of Passover is shorter but this year finishes on Sunday 20 April.
The announcement came just after the first phase of the previously agreed ceasefire expired on Saturday.
Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff.
File pic: Reuters/Evelyn Hockstein/Pool
Phase one saw the release of 33 Israeli hostages held in Gaza and five Thai nationals, in exchange for around 2,000 Palestinian prisoners and detainees.
The extension would push back phase two of the ceasefire, which was intended to introduce talks to bring about a permanent end to the war.
Hamas said earlier on Saturday the group rejected Israel’s “formulation” of extending the first phase of the ceasefire in Gaza, but did not explicitly mention Mr Witkoff’s plan.
It isn’t clear what Hamas’s response to this plan is yet.
Both sides have previously traded accusations that the other violated the fragile ceasefire.
Meanwhile, talks on the long-term future of Gaza are yet to seriously materialise after the UN said it would take decades to rebuild the enclave.
Palestinians gather among the rubble for iftar, the fast-breaking meal, on the first day of Ramadan in Rafah, in the south of the enclave.
Pic: AP/Abdel Kareem Hana
Israeli statement
A statement from the prime minister’s office originally published in Hebrew said that on the first day of the outline, half of the hostages and the bodies of the dead would be released.
It added that at the end, if an agreement on a permanent ceasefire was reached, the remaining hostages and bodies would also be released.
The statement added: “Witkoff proposed the outline for extending the ceasefire after he was impressed that at this stage there was no possibility of bridging the positions of the parties to end the war, and that additional time was needed for talks on a permanent ceasefire.”
It went on to add that Israel could return to fighting “after the 42nd day if it feels that the negotiations are ineffective”, pointing out that this was supported by the Trump administration.
It isn’t clear what dates these days correspond to.
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Vladimir Putin told Donald Trump he “will not back down” from Russia’s goals in Ukraine during a phone call today, the Kremlin has said.
The Russian president spoke to his US counterpart for almost an hour, and Mr Trump “again raised the issue of an early end to military action” in Ukraine, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov told reporters.
In response, Mr Putin said “Russia will not back down” from its aims there, which include “the elimination of the well-known root causes that led to the current state of affairs,” Mr Ushakov said.
The phrase “root causes” is shorthand for Moscow’s argument that it was compelled to invade Ukraine in order to prevent the country from joining NATO.
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Trump and Putin’s latest call on Ukraine
Ukraine and its European allies say this is a pretext to justify what they call an imperial-style war, but Mr Trump has previously shown sympathy with Russia.
At the same time, Mr Putin told the US president that Russia is ready to continue negotiating, the aide said.
The Russian president said any prospective peace deal must see Ukraine give up its NATO bid and recognise his country’s territorial gains.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy, seen with Mr Trump in June, is pushing for Ukraine to join NATO. Pic: Reuters
He also briefed Mr Trump on agreements made last month, which saw Russia and Ukraine exchange prisoners of war and dead soldiers.
Specific dates for the third round of peace talks in Istanbul were not discussed – nor was the US decision to halt some shipments of critical weapons to Ukraine.
Mr Putin and Mr Trump’s call came after the Pentagon confirmed some weapons due to be sent to Ukraine have been held as it reviews military stockpiles.
The paused shipments include air defence missiles and precision-guided artillery, two people familiar with the situation have said.
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The decision led to Ukraine calling in the acting US envoy to Kyiv on Wednesday to underline the importance of military aid from Washington.
Kyiv also cautioned that the move would weaken Ukraine’s ability to defend itself against intensifying Russian airstrikes and battlefield advances.
Mr Putin and Mr Trump’s phone call was the sixth they have publicly disclosed since the US president returned to the White House in January.
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