Israeli officials told The Jerusalem Post Sunday that they are giving Hamas a few days to reach an agreement on the release of additional hostages.
"We are willing to give a chance of a few days, but we won't let it drag on indefinitely," the officials said. "If we see that the negotiations are not being conducted in good faith, we will return to fighting in Gaza."
Hamas will not agree to extend the first phase of the Gaza ceasefire deal as requested by Israel, senior Hamas official Mahmoud Mardawi told Al Jazeera on Sunday in an interview. He added that Hamas would only release the remaining Israeli hostages under the terms of the already agreed-upon phased deal.
On Saturday, a four-hour meeting was held with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and was attended by senior security officials, the negotiation team led by Gal Hirsch, representatives from the Shin Bet, and several ministers including Defense Minister Israel Katz, Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar, and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich.
At the end of the meeting, it was decided to adopt the plan proposed by US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, which stipulates: Israel will agree to a 42-day ceasefire, during which, on the first day, half of the living hostages will be released and half of the bodies of the hostages held by Hamas will be returned, and on the final day, the second group of hostages will be released, and the remaining hostages' bodies will be returned.
In Israel, it was made clear that negotiations would not be allowed to "drag on forever." "If Hamas thinks it can extend the ceasefire or take advantage of the terms of phase one without releasing hostages, they are terribly mistaken," said the prime minister at the start of the cabinet meeting.
Humanitarian aid
On Sunday, Israel announced that in order to pressure Hamas, no humanitarian aid would be allowed into the Gaza Strip, and crossings would be closed.
"Hamas is currently controlling all supplies and goods sent to the Gaza Strip," the prime minister told several ministers on Sunday. "It is abusing the Gaza population trying to receive aid, shooting at them, and turning humanitarian aid into a terrorist budget directed against us. We will not accept this under any circumstances."
Israeli official believe that right now Hamas has enough aid for another 5-6 months.
The White House fully supported Israel's move, which was done in full coordination with the Trump administration.
"Israel has negotiated in good faith since the beginning of this administration to ensure the release of hostages held by Hamas terrorists. We will support their decision regarding the next steps, given that Hamas has announced it is no longer interested in a ceasefire," Brian Hughes, a spokesperson for the US National Security Council, told the Post.
Both Israel and the mediators are currently waiting for Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff's visit to the region, expected by the end of the week. "At this point, things are stalled. No breakthrough is expected before the visit," said two sources familiar with the negotiations.
An Israeli official concluded, "There is no 100% certainty that Hamas will agree to the release of additional hostages. If there is no deal, preparations are being made to return to war within days."
Reuters contributed to this report.