Hamas said Wednesday (October 8, 2025) that “optimism” was prevailing in indirect talks with Israel aimed at ending the Gaza war, with the militant group submitting a list of prisoners it wants released in exchange for freeing Israeli hostages under a deal.

The talks aim to thrash out a plan to implement a 20-point peace proposal put forward last month by U.S. President Donald Trump, to which both Israel and Hamas have responded positively.

The plan calls for a ceasefire, the release of all the hostages, Hamas’s disarmament and a gradual Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.

“The mediators are making great efforts to remove any obstacles to the implementation of the ceasefire, and a spirit of optimism prevails among all parties,” senior Hamas official Taher al-Nunu told AFP from Sharm El-Sheikh.

The Palestinian militant group submitted a list of prisoners it wants to be released in the first phase of the truce “in accordance with the agreed-upon criteria and numbers”, Mr. Nunu added.

In exchange, Hamas is set to release 47 hostages, both alive and dead, who were seized in its October 7, 2023 attack on Israel that sparked the war.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said Trump’s special Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner were now in Sharm El-Sheikh, and that the word he had received since their arrival was “very encouraging”.

He said the U.S. envoys came “with a strong will, a strong message, and a strong mandate from President Trump to end the war in this round of negotiations”.

Mr. Sisi also invited Mr. Trump himself to travel to Egypt for a signing ceremony if a deal were reached.

At the Oval Office on Tuesday (October 7), Mr. Trump told reporters “there’s a possibility that we could have peace in the Middle East” if Hamas and Israel did agree on a ceasefire.

Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani and Turkish intelligence chief Ibrahim Kalin are also expected at the talks on Wednesday (October 8).

The negotiations were taking place under the shadow of the second anniversary of the 2023 Hamas attack, which resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures.

Militants also took 251 people hostage into Gaza, where 47 remain, including 25 the Israeli military says are dead.

Israel’s military campaign in Gaza has killed at least 67,183 people, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory, figures the United Nations considers credible.

The data does not distinguish between civilians and combatants but indicates that over half of the dead are women and children.

Also Read | The course ahead for Trump’s Gaza ceasefire plan 

Protests

Global pressure to end the war has escalated, with much of Gaza flattened, a UN-declared famine unfolding and Israeli hostage families still longing for their loved ones’ return.

A UN probe last month accused Israel of genocide in Gaza, while rights groups have accused Hamas of committing war crimes and crimes against humanity during the October 7 attack. Both sides reject the allegations.

Hundreds of thousands of protesters joined pro-Palestinian mass demonstrations in cities across the world last weekend calling for an immediate end to the war, including in Italy, Spain, Ireland and Britain.

In Gaza, people were desperate for an end to a war that has upended their lives, interrupted their children’s education, and left many families scarred by loss and grief.

“My dream is for the war to end now, not tomorrow,” said Abeer Abu Said, a 21-year-old in Gaza who has lost seven family members in the war.

“I don’t trust anyone — from the Israeli negotiators or even Hamas — they all lie to us. Negotiations for the sake of negotiations, while we die every minute.”

In Israel, people marked the second anniversary of the October 7 attack with music, tears and speeches.

“I rise from the ashes and I come home,” sang Yuval Raphael, a survivor of the massacre at the Nova music festival who represented Israel at the last Eurovision contest.

Orit Baron, whose daughter Yuval was killed at the Nova festival with her fiance Moshe Shuva, told AFP October 7 was a “black” day for the family.

“Now it’s two years. And I’m here to be with her, because this is the last time that she was alive,” the 75-year-old said at the site of the attack.

Prisoners

Key to the negotiations will be the names of the Palestinian prisoners Hamas will push for.

According to Egyptian state-linked media, high-profile inmate Marwan Barghouti — from Hamas’s rival, the Fatah movement — is among those the group wants to see released.

He has been imprisoned since 2002, and was sentenced to life behind bars in 2004 on murder charges.

Regarded as a terrorist by Israel, he often tops opinion polls of popular Palestinian leaders and is sometimes described by his supporters as the “Palestinian Mandela”.

More broadly, Hamas’s top negotiator, Khalil al-Hayya, said the Islamist group wants “guarantees from President Trump and the sponsor countries that the war will end once and for all”.

A Palestinian source close to the Hamas negotiating team said Tuesday’s (October 7) session included Hamas discussing “the initial maps presented by the Israeli side regarding the withdrawal of troops as well as the mechanism and timetable for the hostage-prisoner exchange”.

Published – October 08, 2025 06:43 pm IST

Israeli soldiers ride in armoured personnel carriers (APC) near the Israeli-Gaza border as smoke rises in the Gaza Strip, seen from southern Israel, on January 21, 2024.
| Photo Credit: AP

Hamas on Sunday (October 5, 2025) called for a swift start to a hostage-prisoner exchange with Israel as negotiators from the two warring sides meet in Egypt for crucial talks aimed at ending the nearly two-year war.

Foreign ministers of several countries, including Egypt, said the talks were a “real opportunity” to achieve a comprehensive and sustainable ceasefire in Gaza.

“Hamas is very keen to reach an agreement to end the war and immediately begin the prisoner exchange process in accordance with the field conditions,” a senior Hamas official told AFP on condition of anonymity.

The diplomatic push follows the Palestinian militant group’s positive response to U.S. President Donald Trump’s roadmap for the release of captives in exchange for Palestinians held in Israeli jails.

Negotiators are due to hold talks in the Egyptian resort of Sharm El-Sheikh, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressing hope that hostages held in Gaza could be released within days.

Mr. Netanyahu said Saturday (October 4) he had instructed negotiators to go to Egypt “to finalise the technical details”, while Cairo confirmed it would also be hosting a delegation from Hamas for talks on “the ground conditions and details of the exchange of all Israeli detainees and Palestinian prisoners”.

Egyptian state-linked media said the two parties would hold indirect talks on Sunday and Monday, just before the second anniversary of the October 7 Hamas attack that sparked the war.

The White House said Mr. Trump had sent two envoys to Egypt — his son-in-law Jared Kushner and Middle East negotiator Steve Witkoff.

“During communications with mediators, Hamas insisted that it is essential for Israel to halt military operations across all areas of the Gaza Strip, cease all air, reconnaissance, and drone activity, and withdraw from inside Gaza City,” a Palestinian source close to Hamas said.

“In parallel with the cessation of Israeli military activity, Hamas and the resistance factions will also halt their military operations and actions,” he added.

According to Mr. Trump’s plan, Israel is expected to release 250 Palestinian prisoners with life sentences and more than 1,700 detainees from the Gaza Strip who were arrested after October 7, 2023, from the onset of the war.

But Mr. Trump warned he would “not tolerate delay” from Hamas, urging the group to move quickly towards a deal “or else all bets will be off”.

Mr. Trump said on Truth Social that Israel had agreed to an initial line of withdrawal in Gaza and that this had been shared with Hamas.

“When Hamas confirms, the Ceasefire will be IMMEDIATELY effective, the Hostages and Prisoner Exchange will begin, and we will create the conditions for the next phase of withdrawal,” he posted, alongside a map of the proposed line.

Mr. Netanyahu said that “in the coming days we will be able to bring back all our hostages… during the Sukkot holidays,” referring to the week-long Jewish festival that begins on Monday.

Strikes continue

Despite Mr. Trump calling on Israel to halt its bombings, Israel has continued to carry out strikes on Gaza.

AFPTV footage showed thick smoke billowing into the skyline over the coastal territory on Sunday (October 5).

Gaza civil defence agency, a rescue force operating under Hamas authority, said Israeli strikes killed at least five people in Gaza City in the morning, after several attacks through the night.

On Saturday (October 4), nearly 60 people were killed in Israeli strikes, including 40 in Gaza City alone, the agency reported.

“The decision to occupy Gaza, the collapse of multi-storey buildings, and the intensity of IDF operations in the city have led to the evacuation of roughly 900,000 residents to the south, creating immense pressure on Hamas and the countries that support it,” Defence Minister Israel Katz said in a speech on Sunday (October 5).

The United Nations had estimated that around one million people were living the area before the start of the assault.

“There has been a noticeable decrease in the number of air strikes (since last night). The tanks and military vehicles have slightly pulled back, but I believe this is a tactical move, not a withdrawal,” said Muin Abu Rajab, 40, a resident of Al-Rimal neighbourhood in Gaza City.

No role for Hamas

Hamas has insisted it should have a say in the territory’s future.

Mr. Trump’s roadmap stipulates that Hamas and other factions “not have any role in the governance of Gaza”, while also calling for a halt to hostilities, the release of hostages within 72 hours, a gradual Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and Hamas’s disarmament.

Under the proposal, administration of the territory would be taken up by a technocratic body overseen by a post-war transitional authority headed by Mr. Trump himself.

“Netanyahu will not be able to escape this time… (Trump) is the only one who can force Israel to comply and stop the war,” said Sami Adas, 50, who lives in a tent in Gaza City with his family.

Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.

Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed at least 67,139 Palestinians, according to health ministry figures in the Hamas-run territory that the United Nations considers reliable.

Published – October 05, 2025 06:54 pm IST

After weeks of scraping by to feed her six children in Gaza, the 38-year-old woman thought she’d found a lifeline.

At a shelter, a friend told her about a man who could help with food, aid, maybe even a job. The woman — separated from her husband, and forced to shutter the business that once kept the family afloat — approached him.

It was about a month into the war in Gaza, she said, and he promised her work, a six-month contract with an aid agency. On the day she believed she’d sign the paperwork, he drove her not to an office but to an empty apartment. He complimented her, she said, and told her to remove her headscarf.

He told her he loved her and wouldn’t force her, she said, but he also wouldn’t let her leave. Eventually, they had a sexual encounter, she said. She declined to give details of the nature of their interaction, saying she felt fear and shame.

“I had to play along because I was scared, I wanted out of this place,” the woman said.

Before she left, she said, he handed her some money — 100 shekels, about $30. Two weeks later, he gave her a box of medicine and a box of food. But for weeks, the job didn’t materialise.

As Gaza’s humanitarian crisis grows, women say they have been exploited by local men — some associated with aid groups — promising food, money, water, supplies or work in exchange for sexual interactions. Six women detailed their experiences to The Associated Press, each speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of retribution from their families or the men and because sexual harassment and assault are considered taboo topics. Sometimes, they said, the men’s solicitation was blatant: “Let me touch you,” one woman recalled being told. Other times, it was culturally coded: “I want to marry you,” or “Let’s go together somewhere.”

Aid groups and experts say exploitation often arises during conflicts and other times of desperation, particularly when people are displaced and reliant on assistance. Reports of abuse and exploitation have emerged during emergencies in South Sudan, Burkina Faso, Congo, Chad and Haiti.

“It’s a horrible reality that humanitarian crises make people vulnerable in many ways — increased sexual violence is often a consequence,” said Heather Barr, associate director for the women’s rights division at Human Rights Watch. “The situation in Gaza today is unspeakable, especially for women and girls.”

Four psychologists working with women in Gaza described patients’ accounts to AP. One said her organization — focused on protecting women and children — treated dozens of cases involving men sexually exploiting vulnerable women, including some in which they became pregnant. The psychologists, all Palestinians working for local organizations in Gaza, spoke on condition of anonymity because of privacy concerns for the women involved and the sensitive nature of the cases, in a conservative culture where sex outside of marriage in any context is seen as a grave offense. They said none of their patients wanted to speak with AP directly.

Five of the women who shared their stories with AP said they did not engage in sexual interaction with the men. The psychologists said some women who came to them agreed to the men’s demands, while others refused.

Six human rights and relief organisations — including the local Palestinian group the Women’s Affairs Center and the Protection from Sexual Exploitation and Abuse network, which coordinates with various aid groups including United Nations agencies — told AP they were aware of reports of sexual abuse and exploitation linked to receiving aid.

Aid groups say the context in Gaza — nearly two years of war, the displacement of at least 90% of the population, and turmoil over aid access — has made humanitarian work for vulnerable people particularly challenging. As hunger and desperation grow across the enclave, women in particular say they’ve been pushed to make impossible decisions.

The groups blame Israel’s offensive and blockade for the humanitarian crisis and say the war has made documenting exploitation cases difficult. More than 66,000 Palestinians have been killed, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which is part of the Hamas-run government and staffed by medical professionals. The ministry does not say how many of those killed were civilians or combatants, but it says women and children make up around half the fatalities.

“Israel’s siege on the Gaza Strip and the restrictions on humanitarian aid are what’s forcing women to resort to this,” said Amal Syam, director of the Women’s Affairs Center.

Israel says there are no restrictions on aid and that it has taken steps to expand what comes into Gaza. Israel also accuses Hamas of siphoning off aid — without providing evidence of widespread diversion — and blames U.N. agencies for failing to deliver food it has allowed in. The U.N denies there is widespread aid diversion.

One of the women who spoke to AP described phone calls that began in October, a year into the war. At first, she said, the man’s questions were simple. What happened to her husband? How many children did they have? But, the 35-year-old widow said, his tone took a turn. What underwear was she wearing? How did her husband please her?

She said she’d met the man in Muwasi, a strip of land Israel designated a humanitarian zone. She described standing in line to get assistance and giving her phone number to an aid worker — a Palestinian in a uniform labeled United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA).

Shortly after he took her number, the late-night calls began. He would ask sexual questions, she said, and she’d stay silent. She said that at one point, he asked to come to her, for sex. She refused, and after nearly a dozen calls but no aid, she blocked his number, she added.

The woman said she reported him to UNRWA in Gaza in a verbal complaint. She said she was told she needed a recording of the conversations as proof, but she had an old phone that couldn’t record calls.

UNRWA communications director Juliette Touma said via email that the agency has a zero-tolerance policy for sexual exploitation, takes each report seriously, and doesn’t require proof. But she wouldn’t say whether staff were aware of this particular incident, citing UNRWA’s policy against discussing individual cases, and wouldn’t comment further on its awareness or work on exploitation cases overall.

The PSEA network — to which UNRWA belongs — said survivors can report anonymously or without naming the perpetrator and are never required to provide proof.

Understanding the scale of exploitation is challenging, said Sarah Achiro, a coordinator for the network, which works to prevent, and respond to sexual exploitation and abuse in humanitarian and development settings. Gaza’s limited connectivity restricts calls that could report abuse, and constant displacement makes it harder for survivors to seek in-person help and for aid groups to build trust.

Achiro noted that sexual violence is vastly underreported, particularly in humanitarian and conflict settings, where data often shows just “the tip of the iceberg.”

The PSEA network said that last year, it received 18 allegations of sexual abuse and exploitation linked to receiving humanitarian aid in Gaza, all involving either aid workers or those associated with it, such as community representatives or private contractors. Allegations against aid workers are investigated by the employer organization. The network wouldn’t indicate how many of the cases were being investigated, saying it can’t disclose information unless they are formally concluded.

Four of the women who spoke to AP said the men who solicited them identified themselves as aid workers, and, in one case, a community leader promising aid.

Gaza peace plan LIVE

Like the widow, several women said it happened while registering or trying to register for aid, with men taking their numbers — frequently a step in the aid process — and later calling. The women said all the men were Palestinian. Several said they weren’t able to identify which aid group the men seemed to be associated with.

The U.N. and aid groups generally work with local communities: paying people as contractors, using volunteers, or having leaders appointed by the community as liaisons.

The mother of six said the man who promised her a job drove a car with U.N. markings. After their interaction, she said, the messages kept coming — late-night sexual calls and requests for photos. She described dodging them with excuses: She was busy, her phone was broken, she couldn’t talk.

But about a month after their sexual interaction, she saw the man at an aid site, in December 2023. He then helped her get a six-month position with UNRWA, which she completed, she said.

She told AP she never reported the man, their encounter or his exploitation attempts.

“I told myself that no one would believe it,” she said. “Maybe they would say I am only saying this so that they would give me a job.”

Asked about the woman’s story, UNRWA’s Touma emphasized the organization’s zero-tolerance policy and said it would seek more information on the exploitation incidents and accusations.

Since the interaction and her job, the woman has been displaced, doesn’t have work and struggles to feed her family. She said she blocked the man’s number but he’s tried to contact her as recently as this summer.

Some women say they’ve been solicited multiple times, by various men throughout the war.

A 37-year-old mother of four told AP she was approached twice, once by the head of a shelter. She said the man offered food and shelter if they could “go together somewhere,” like the sea. She said she understood he was asking for something sexual. She refused.

Psychologists and women’s groups said cases have increased as the crisis worsened — with more people displaced, reliant on aid, and crammed into camps. One psychologist said some women were kicked out when their husbands learned what happened.

Before the war, exploitation reports happened once or twice a year, but are up dramatically, said Ms. Syam, of the Women’s Affairs Center. But she said many organisations won’t highlight the numbers or the issue.

“Most of us prefer to keep the focus on the violence and violations committed by the Israeli occupation,” Ms. Syam said.

Israel says it is fighting to dismantle Hamas and release the hostages taken in the 2023 attack that sparked the war, and that it mitigates civilian harm as much as possible.

The women who spoke to AP said it’s important to try to hold on to their dignity as the war continues.

For weeks last fall, a 29-year-old mother said she received calls from an aid worker asking her to marry him in exchange for nutritional supplements for her four children.

She refused and blocked his number, she said, but he called from different phones. He insisted he liked her and made distasteful comments that she called too vulgar to repeat.

“I felt completely humiliated,” she said. “I had to go and ask for help for my children. If I didn’t do it, who would?”

The 20-point peace plan for Gaza was released after United States President Donald Trump’s meeting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. on Septamber 29, 2025. File
| Photo Credit: AP