The chances of reaching an Israel-Hamas hostage agreement are 'nearly zero'.

The United States, which says it plans to present a new proposal in the next two or three days, is now considered unlikely to succeed, Channel 12 revealed. The channel cited immense frustration among Israeli negotiators, who believed that at least an agreement could be reached between Israel and mediators, which would then be passed on to Hamas.

But Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's press conference last Monday, where he repeatedly stressed the need to maintain IDF control over the Philadelphi Corridor along the Gaza-Egypt border – a position not explicitly stated in the May proposal approved by Netanyahu – buried any chance of reaching an agreement. Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar subsequently took a tougher stance.

The prospects for progress were further hampered when Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich stated that the Philadelphia Corridor was not the only "red line," and he also opposed the IDF's withdrawal from the Netzarim Corridor and the release of Palestinian security prisoners serving sentences for murder. Essentially, the stance taken by Smotrich, the leader of the far-right Islamic Restoration party, a key component of Netanyahu's coalition, effectively "killed" Israel's May proposal.

Channel 12, citing a source close to the negotiations, added: "It seems the current proposal will not materialize at this time. There is no prospect of a phased agreement." The channel reported that a senior Israeli negotiator told the hostage families that "even the first phase" of the agreement – ​​a six-week ceasefire during which women, children, and sick hostages would be released – was unlikely to be implemented. "The only way forward is to end the war," the negotiator reportedly said, adding: "Let's continue to act to gain public support for ending the war."