Israel is advancing major efforts to reach a ceasefire and hostage release deal ahead of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to Washington next week, three Hebrew TV outlets reported on Wednesday evening.

Israel is now, for the first time, willing to engage in talks over a comprehensive ceasefire and hostage release framework in Gaza that would see the release of all 50 remaining hostages from Hamas, Channel 12 news reported, citing sources involved in the talks.

Even if Hamas agrees to the framework in principle, potentially within the next 24 hours, the process will take time, the report added.

Assuming a basic commitment from Hamas is reached, negotiations will then need to be held in Doha or Cairo to discuss the release of Palestinian security prisoners in exchange for the hostages, the process of the IDF’s withdrawal from Gaza, and the entry of humanitarian aid — talks which would take at least a week, according to the network.

At the same time, broader talks — led primarily by Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, US special envoy Steve Witkoff and Qatari officials — are currently underway to determine how far Israel is willing to go toward ending the war, and whether Hamas is prepared to accept the terms that Israel offers. Without such acceptance, the overall chances for a deal remain slim, despite growing optimism, the report concluded.

On Wednesday evening, Netanyahu said Israel’s aims of both defeating Hamas and freeing the hostages are still attainable: “I am telling you, there will be no Hamas,” he said during a visit to the Eilat Ashkelon Pipeline Company headquarters in Ashkelon. “There will be no Hamastan. We are not going back........

© The Times of Israel