Israel under growing international pressure to accept ceasefire deal

Short-lived celebrations

The celebrations proved short-lived, though, when Israel rejected the deal, saying it was not acceptable because its terms had been "softened". It vowed to continue with its invasion of Gaza's southernmost city of Rafah.

While Hamas's initial acceptance of the offer might suggest it has played its trump card too early, the fact that Netanyahu has agreed to send a team of negotiators to Cairo to discuss an agreement suggests that the negotiations remain very much alive, even if there is uncertainty about the eventual outcome.

The Israelis claim the terms of the deal on offer from Hamas are "far from" its "obligatory demands", with Israeli officials warning that the Hamas plan "would appear to be a ruse intended to make Israel look like the side refusing a deal". 

As a result, the Israeli army intends to continue with their planned ground invasion of Rafah—a move that has drawn criticism from both the US and international aid agencies. Israel's determination to maintain its offensive against Hamas was reflected in its seizure and closing of the Rafah crossing, thereby cutting off a vital aid road to Palestinian civilians.

Growing international pressure

Israel's refusal to accept the US-Qatari-Egypt-brokered ceasefire deal is likely to increase the Netanyahu government's international isolation even further, with world leaders urging both sides to agree terms and end the bloodshed in Gaza.

The pressure on Israel to accept a ceasefire deal will certainly increase after Hamas bowed to pressure from world leaders to accept the ceasefire terms. Speaking during his recent visit to Riyadh for the World Economic Forum, British Foreign Secretary David Cameron made a special plea to Hamas to accept the agreement.

"I hope Hamas does take this deal. Honestly, all the pressure in the world and all the eyes of the world should be on them today, saying, 'Take that deal'. It will bring about this stop in the fighting that we all want to see so badly," he said.

Cameron's comments were echoed by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who insisted that Hamas had been presented with an "extraordinarily generous" offer by Israel that he hoped it would accept.

Accepting the deal so far on offer certainly represents a major concession for Hamas, as releasing the remaining Israeli hostages—a central part of the deal—ultimately deprives Hamas of their main trump card in terms of their future dealings with the Israelis. 

Hamas leaders are also deeply opposed to demands for the militant group's leadership and infrastructure in Gaza to be dismantled.

Right-wing pressure

Agreeing to a deal that would result in the release of significant numbers of Palestinian prisoners being released also raises many challenges for the Netanyahu government, with several prominent members of Netanyahu's right-wing government threatening to resign—a move that would cause the government's collapse.

Netanyahu himself has further complicated matters by warning that Israel is going to continue with its military offensive against Rafah even if negotiators manage to secure a deal for the hostages' release.

In a statement issued by his office, Netanyahu warned that Israel will carry out its military offensive against Rafah regardless of whether or not a ceasefire and hostage release deal is reached. "The idea that we will stop the war before achieving all its objectives is out of the question," Netanyahu said.

As a consequence, the stalemate over negotiations for a Gaza ceasefire remains, despite Hamas's announcement that it is willing to accept the terms currently on offer. The key question now is whether the Israeli government can be persuaded to do the same and take the first steps towards bringing the bloodshed in Gaza to an end.