The Israeli government is mulling new measures to pressure Hamas to release the remaining hostages held in the Gaza Strip, including the use of mass arrests to place terrorists freed during the two previous hostage deals back in custody, according to a report published by Israel’s Channel 12 Monday morning.

Qatari and Egyptian mediators brokering talks between Israel and Hamas on the basis of the Trump administration’s proposal, drafted by special envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff, have made little progress in bringing the two sides towards an agreement since the previous ceasefire expired on March 2nd.

Since then, Israel has offered to resume the truce in the Gaza Strip, on the basis of the January 19th agreement, with Hamas freeing Israeli hostages in exchange for the release of jailed terrorists and a continuation of the ceasefire.

Hamas, however, has insisted that any new hostage deal include Israel committing to a permanent end to the war and a full IDF withdrawal from the Gaza Strip.

Following the lapse of the previous ceasefire, Israel has pressured Hamas with a siege of the Gaza Strip – barring the entry of aid to Gaza – and targeted killings of Hamas terrorists.

Israel has also massively expanded its security buffers in the Strip, placing half of the coastal enclave under IDF control.

Until now, the Israeli government has rejected proposals from some ministers, including Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich (Religious Zionist Party), to ratchet up pressure on Hamas further by carrying out sweeping arrest operations of terrorists released during the November 2023 and six-week ceasefire which lasted from January through March 2nd.

The proposed operation would primarily target those terrorists who were released to Jerusalem, Judea, and Samaria, and would involve the simultaneous arrest of dozens of freed terrorists.

According to Monday’s report, the plan has already been discussed repeatedly in the Israeli cabinet, only to be rejected following pressure by the security establishment.

On Tuesday, the cabinet is slated to hold a hearing on a deadline for the current brokered talks with Hamas, with the government expected to decide in the near future on a final date by which an agreement must be reached.

Should the deadline pass with no deal, Israel is expected to shift towards a full-fledged ground operation across the Gaza Strip aimed at seizing control of the entire area, along with a new set of measures pressuring Hamas.

Among the measures now being considered, according to the report, is the mass arrest proposal, which the cabinet may now choose to endorse in the event Hamas refuses to soften its position.

Photo: Flash90