Hamas's continued refusal to release hostages will be met with consequences, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said during a security cabinet meeting on Sunday.
He addressed the terror group's refusal to agree to US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff's proposal, noting, "There will be no free lunches."
He referred to Israel's halting humanitarian aid from entering the Gaza Strip shortly after, "Hamas is currently seizing all supplies and goods sent to the Gaza Strip. It is abusing the Gazan population trying to receive aid, shooting at them, and turning humanitarian assistance into a terror budget directed against us."
"We will not agree to this under any circumstances," he continued.
In the early hours of Sunday, the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) said Israel had decided to adopt the US's proposal for a temporary ceasefire spanning the Ramadan and Passover periods.
Following a security discussion chaired by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and with the participation of the Defense Minister, senior security establishment officials and the negotiating team, it was decided:
— Prime Minister of Israel (@IsraeliPM) March 2, 2025
This comes shortly after the end of a four-hour security meeting headed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, which coincided with the official end of the Gaza ceasefire deal at midnight.
On the first day of the framework, proposed by US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, half of the living hostages and the remains of deceased hostages will be released.
At the end of the framework — if an agreement is reached for a permanent ceasefire — the remaining living and deceased hostages will be released, the PMO added.
The statement noted that Hamas has "so far remained firm in its refusal of this framework."
However, it added that should Hamas change its position, "Israel will immediately enter negotiations on all details of Witkoff’s framework."
Current Israel-Hamas ceasefire negotiations stalled
Fighting will resume after the 42nd day (1 March) according to the existing agreement if Hamas does not agree on the new framework and other negotiations are ineffective, the PMO added.
The PMO said that this clause was supported by a side letter from the previous US administration and was also endorsed by the Trump administration.
Witkoff's proposal for an extension of the ceasefire followed assessments that, at this stage, "there is no possibility of bridging the gaps between the parties’ positions to end the war and that additional time is needed for negotiations on a permanent ceasefire."
This comes after The Jerusalem Post reported earlier on Saturday that no progress has been made in the ceasefire talks in Cairo, and Israel is reaching a dead end.