Egypt Proposes Israel-Hamas Ceasefire Starting 9:00 a.m. Tuesday

Tel Aviv, Israel — Egypt has extended a proposal for a ceasefire that would effectively end Operation Protective Edge, Israel’s name for the military operation against Muslim Brotherhood terrorist group Hamas.

According to reports, the deal entails that both sides must end all fighting as of 9:00 a.m. Tuesday. Forty-eight hours later, an Israeli and Hamas delegation are expected to meet with Egyptian intermediaries to continue truce discussions.

According to Al Arabiya, both Israel and Hamas have agreed to the ceasefire. Israel, however, has yet to make any official announcement. Haaretz reported that the Israeli security cabinet is set to convene Tuesday morning to discuss the truce.

Israel is requesting as part of the long-term truce negotiations that Hamas empty its weapons caches and close down the underground tunnels that run between Gaza and Israel.

Hamas is demanding the release of 56 prisoners who were recently arrested after two Hamas operatives killed three teenage Israeli boys. The Muslim Brotherhood terror group is also asking that Egypt open up its Rafah border crossing with Gaza.

“There are efforts and communications on the issue of a truce deal, but until now there is nothing final,” said a Hamas spokesperson.

US Secretary of State John Kerry is set to arrive Tuesday in Egypt to meet with senior government officials along with President el-Sisi. The Obama administration’s refusal to support an IDF ground operation into Gaza may be seen as the likely impetus for forcing the hand of Israel in signing the ceasefire agreement.

Hamas has breached each and every cease-fire it has agreed to since Israel’s disengagement from Gaza in 2005. Since the 2005 disengagement, Hamas has fired approximately 8,000 rockets into Israel.

Meanwhile, late Monday, a Hamas missile that struck an Israeli Bedouin village near the Negev desert sent two young girls to the hospital. One is said to be in critical condition.

At 11:00 p.m., Israel was again fired upon from Lebanon, as a rocket fired from the Lebanese border area hit the Israeli coastal city of Nahariya. The IDF responded immediately and fired artillery shells at the launch sites.