An Israeli official has proposed the possibility of offering a safe passage for Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar to leave Gaza, contingent upon the release of all remaining hostages in Palestinian territories, as reported by CNN and Bloomberg. According to Israel’s Coordinator for Hostages and Missing Persons, Gal Hirsch, speaking to CNN’s Jessica Dean on Sunday, if all 101 remaining hostages are released, “I believe we would agree to establish a safe corridor” for Sinwar and those wishing to join him to leave Gaza.
Hirsch stated that these conditions, along with the “disarmament and deradicalization” in Gaza, could help restore the region and end the conflict. On Tuesday, he elaborated on the idea in an interview with Bloomberg, indicating that Israel had already proposed a safe passage for Sinwar. He told Bloomberg, “I am prepared to provide a safe passage for Sinwar and his family, and anyone who wants to join him. We want the hostages back. We want disarmament and the removal of extremism, of course… A new system will govern Gaza.”
He mentioned that the offer of safe passage had been tabled a day and a half ago, though he did not specify the response. Hirsch added that Israel would be open to releasing prisoners it holds as part of any deal.
Israel accuses Sinwar, one of the most powerful figures in Hamas, of being the chief architect of the events of October 7 in Israel, when gunmen killed 1,200 people and took more than 250 as hostages. He is also among the Hamas leaders charged by the U.S. Attorney General in connection with the deadly attack.
