Israel, US aim to extend cease-fire while delaying start of talks to end war

As a cease-fire that halted a 15-month-long war nears its end on Saturday, Israel and the U.S. are trying to push Hamas to extend the first phase of the truce, delaying a discussion of the hardest parts of a pact that would see a complete end to the war.

The U.S., which is a key mediator in the talks, has said it is committed to reaching the second stage of the cease-fire and ending the war but needs more time to do so. President Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, who previously helped seal the first stage of the cease-fire, is heading to the region this week to negotiate its continuation.

“We have to get an extension of phase one and so I’ll be going into the region this week probably Wednesday to negotiate that,” Witkoff told CNN on Sunday.

Hamas showed early signs it might be open to an extension. “Extending the first phase depends on what is put on the table and the guarantees of the occupation’s commitment,” a Hamas spokesman said on Sunday.

The move to extend the cease-fire comes as Israel and Hamas are at loggerheads over Israel’s refusal to release over 600 Palestinian prisoners as part of the terms of the deal. On Saturday, after Hamas released the six remaining living hostages set to be freed in the first phase of the deal, Israel said it would temporarily withhold the corresponding Palestinian prisoners until Hamas ended what Israel called humiliating staged ceremonies. Hamas said the move was a violation of the deal and that it wouldn’t go ahead with releasing four dead bodies on Thursday, as per the deal’s terms.

Sixty-two hostages, taken in the Oct. 7, 2023, attack remain captive in Gaza, including more than 20 who are believed to be alive, according to Israel. Recently released hostages have reported back on other hostages who were seen alive in captivity, according to the Hostages and Missing Families Forum. Those who have returned have spoken of poor conditions in captivity, adding more urgency to secure their release.

Israel and Hamas agreed to a phased deal with the first phase consisting of a 42-day cease-fire and Hamas’s release of 33 Israeli hostages in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners. The second phase of the deal would see a complete end to the war and the release of the remaining living hostages. Israel has refused until recently to begin those negotiations. It has insisted Hamas play no role in Gaza and fully disarm. Hamas is willing to allow another entity to have administrative rule of Gaza but doesn’t want to agree to disarm.

Witkoff said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is committed to freeing the hostages but has a red line: “Hamas cannot be involved in a governing body when this thing is resolved. So I think he is trying to square the circle on both of those things.”

Israeli officials have told Arab mediators that Israel wants to retain an open-ended security role in Gaza, create buffer zones in the north and east of the territory as well as a complete dismantlement of Hamas’s military capabilities, mediators said. Israel has also told mediators it won’t withdraw from the Philadelphi corridor, a narrow strip of land that borders Egypt.

“In phase two you have to talk about deep issues—you talk about the end of the war, and you talk about withdrawal and he doesn’t want to be in the position where he was to decide about these issues,” said Michael Milshtein, a former head of Palestinian affairs for Israeli military intelligence, referring to Netanyahu. “Therefore he will try to extend the first phase for as long as possible.”

Netanyahu is also facing internal political pressure over ending the war. A key partner in his ruling coalition, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, has said he would quit the government—threatening the stability of the coalition—if Israel goes through with the second phase of the deal and ends the war.

Most Hamas officials agree that the group is unlikely to survive as ruler in Gaza—proposed plans for who will rule Gaza after the war don’t include a key role for Hamas. But the group’s hard-liners based in the Gaza Strip want it to remain an armed force that can exert influence behind-the-scenes and potentially return to fighting Israel, mediators said.

Nevertheless, Witkoff told Fox News on Sunday that he was confident the two sides could reach phase two which would end the war and see a full Israeli retreat from Gaza.

The strategy of putting off the second phase for now may work for a little while but ultimately the bigger issues will have to be addressed, said Milshtein, who is now a senior analyst at the Dayan Center at Tel Aviv University in Israel.

“Hamas isn’t stupid. At a certain stage they will understand that Israel is trying to push more and more for the extension of phase one without reaching phase two,” he said.

Write to Anat Peled at anat.peled@wsj.com and Summer Said at summer.said@wsj.com