Israel Signals Willingness to Pursue Permanent Gaza Ceasefire if Temporary Truce Holds

The Israeli Foreign Minister said on 9 July that if Israel and Hamas succeed in agreeing to a temporary ceasefire in Gaza, Jerusalem will move to negotiate a permanent halt to hostilities. The pledge is one of the clearest signals to date that Israel is willing to discuss a long-term peace arrangement, linking it explicitly to the establishment of an interim truce that mediators—including Egypt, Qatar and the United States—have been trying to broker amid continued fighting in the enclave.