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This past Friday, Hamas announced that it had backed specific elements of the former president's ultimatum to end the conflict in Gaza, agreeing to a hostage exchange and to relinquish administrative authority in the coastal enclave, but stated that it wished additional negotiations on remaining parts of the plan.

The group did not specify whether it would agree to disarm – a critical component of the Trump proposal – and remained vague its answer to additional parts of the comprehensive plan first proposed by Trump earlier this week.

It was unclear how the former president would respond to a qualified reply to his proposal, which arrived just hours after he issued a Sunday cutoff for the organization to respond. He stated that if an deal was not reached "all hell" would ensue against Hamas, whose militants he portrayed as encircled and cornered.

Major Concessions and Conditions

In a statement, the group expressed that it was providing its "endorsement of freeing all occupation captives – both living and deceased – according to the swap terms contained in president Trump's plan, with the required practical arrangements for executing the exchange."

The communication continued to state that the organization was prepared to turn over "the administration of the Gaza Strip to a local body of non-partisan experts founded on local agreement and backed by regional support."

Areas Needing Further Negotiation

However, the group noted that "remaining matters" in the strategy would need to be negotiated further "within a unified Palestinian national framework." The unstated issues that Hamas will request negotiations on are likely to involve the issue of its arms, the pullout of Israeli troops from the region, and international guarantees for the enforcement of a permanent truce.

The former president's plan demanded an immediate end to hostilities in Gaza, an exchange of hostages and local detainees within 72 hours of the agreement's signing, a phased withdrawal of state forces from the strip, as well as the disarmament of Hamas and a postwar interim authority headed by Trump.

Humanitarian and Rebuilding Provisions

The deal also stipulated a increase of assistance to Gaza, parts of which are presently undergoing starvation, and rebuilding to the mostly demolished enclave.

The deal was mostly viewed as disadvantageous to the faction and if agreed in full, would likely spell the group's demise as an militant Palestinian group while requiring minimal concessions from Israel. Global influence on the group to approve the plan, was immense though, with the majority of regional and international powers welcoming the Trump administration imitative.

Impact of the Hostage Exchange

Although the group did not right away agree to disarm, its agreement to hand over hostages will be seen as important. The forty-eight hostages have been utilized by the group as primary bargaining power throughout the nearly 24-month conflict in its discussions with the United States and Israel. Giving them up will leave the group with limited negotiating tools in the future.

Not the U.S. administration nor Jewish state officials have yet responded to Hamas's appeal for amendments to the Trump demand.

War Toll and Background

The Israeli war in Gaza has claimed at least over sixty-two thousand locals and wounded about one hundred seventy thousand, according to the Gaza health authority. The hostilities was launched by Israel in reaction to Hamas-led militants murdering about twelve hundred people and capturing two hundred fifty-one hostages in Israel almost 24 months ago.