Israel’s cabinet to convene Thursday to discuss 'significant' new progress in hostage talks with Hamas

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will convene a cabinet meeting on Thursday to discuss new initiatives for a hostage and ceasefire deal with Hamas, Israeli media outlets reported on Tuesday.

In his latest iteration of short video interviews with his aide, Netanyahu said on Monday that there was “significant” progress in the talks with Hamas.

“It’s too early to raise hopes,” he continued, “but we are working tirelessly right now, and all the time. I hope we will be able to move forward.”

Speaking with the Times of Israel, an Israeli official also said there was “tentative progress” in the talks with Hamas in recent days.

“There is a chance. There are contacts – and there are developments,” an Israeli official told the Jerusalem Post. The talks reportedly focus on the latest Witkoff proposal, which includes the release of 10 Israeli hostages in return for 60 days of ceasefire.

Hamas has reportedly worked on a new response to the proposal amid heavy pressure from Qatar, as well as Arab-American Bishara Bahbah and the White House envoy, Steve Witkoff.

Bahbah, who is originally from Lebanon, has been sent to Qatar and has talked with senior Hamas officials in recent weeks.

The Jerusalem Post cited informed sources who said that Hamas' upcoming response could lead to a breakthrough in the talks.

U.S. President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu talked on the phone on Monday, and in addition to the Iran nuclear talks, also discussed the Gaza War.

Afterward, Trump told reporters, “We are in the midst of negotiations between us, Israel, and Hamas. We'll see what happens with Gaza. We want to bring the hostages back.”

Meanwhile, the fighting on the ground continued unabated. On Tuesday, a rocket launched by Hamas from the northern Gaza Strip triggered alarm sirens in Zikim, before the Israeli Air Force intercepted it.

#عاجل ‼️ الى كل المتواجدين في شمال قطاع غزة وتحديدًا في أحياء الكرامة، عبد الرحمن، النهضة ومعسكر جباليا في بلوكات 975, 979, 980, 982, 983, 1814
⭕️جيش الدفاع الإسرائيلي يعمل بقوة شديدة جداً في مناطق وجودكم لتدمير قدرات المنظمات الإرهابية.
⭕️سيرد جيش الدفاع بشكل صارم على كل عملية… pic.twitter.com/bv3YjWr6BU

— افيخاي ادرعي (@AvichayAdraee) June 10, 2025

In response, IDF Arabic Spokesman Col. Avichay Adraee issued evacuation orders for the launch areas near Jabaliya, before impending airstrikes.

Earlier Tuesday, Hamas again alleged that IDF troops fired on Gazan civilians, claiming that 17 Palestinians were killed by IDF fire near an aid distribution site.

The military confirmed that troops fired warning shots “to distance suspects who were advancing in the area of Wadi Gaza and posed a threat to the troops. This is despite warnings that the area is an active combat zone.”

“The IDF is aware of reports regarding several individuals injured in the area. An initial inquiry suggests that the number of reported individuals injured does not align with the information held by the IDF. The details are under review.”

“The warning shots were fired hundreds of meters from the aid distribution site, prior to its opening hours and toward the suspects who posed a threat to the troops,” the military stressed.

כוחות צה״ל בפיקוד הדרום ממשיכים לפעול בהכוונת אגף המודיעין ושב"כ נגד ארגוני הטרור ברחבי רצועת עזה, במסגרת מבצע "מרכבות גדעון".

במספר פעילויות של צוותי הקרב של אוגדה 98 ביממה האחרונה, זיהו הכוחות כעשרה מחבלים בסמוך אליהם.
הכוחות חיסלו את המחבלים באמצעות ירי צלפים וירי פגזים… pic.twitter.com/pTpgPRmErv

— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) June 9, 2025

On Sunday, Israeli troops in the Gaza Strip killed 10 terrorists in a single incident, after they posed a threat to them. In another incident, “IDF troops identified five terrorists adjacent to them. Following the identification, the troops directed an IAF aircraft that struck and eliminated the terrorists,“ the army said.

Throughout Sunday, “the IAF struck dozens of terror targets throughout the Gaza Strip, including military structures, terrorists, anti-tank missile launchers, terror tunnels, and additional terrorist infrastructure sites used by the Hamas terrorist organization that posed a threat to the troops in the area.”

The IDF also stated that troops of the 188th Armored Brigade completed an operation to expand the security zone securing the Israeli communities located on the Gaza border and beyond.

As part of the operation, they dismantled underground infrastructure in the area of Khirbat Ikhzaa, “which served as a central stronghold of the Hamas terrorist organization.”

הושלם מבצע של חטיבה 188 להשמדת יותר מ-1,200 תשתיות טרור בח׳רבת אחזעה ולהרחבת מרחב האבטחה מול יישובי הנגב המערבי

לכל הפרטים והתיעודים 👈 https://t.co/mVPPhHqFNG pic.twitter.com/ha9FVLW0p7

— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) June 10, 2025

During the Oct. 7 invasion and massacre, “hundreds of Hamas terrorists emerged from this area and infiltrated into communities,” the IDF said.

Soldiers from the 188th Armored Brigade and the Yahalom engineering commando also found and dismantled an underground tunnel route, 500 meters long and 25 meters deep.

“During combat engineering operations and through Israeli Air Force strikes, dozens of terrorists were eliminated and over 1,200 terrorist infrastructure sites – both above and below ground – were dismantled, in order to remove threats to the communities near the border.”