TNA Staff
The New Arab / November 10, 2025
Mediators are trying to find a solution for 200 Hamas fighters trapped in Gaza, who Israel has threatened to kill, as Jared Kushner arrives in Israel.
Hamas’s leadership is currently holding talks with Gaza ceasefire mediators are currently holding discussions regarding hundreds of the group’s fighters trapped in underground tunnels in Rafah, Palestinian sources told The New Arab’s sister site Al-Araby al-Jadeed on Monday.
According to the sources, discussions are focused on finding a solution that guarantees that the fighters are allowed to remain in the Gaza Strip under international guarantees and security arrangements.
The option to deport them overseas is not “on the table” for the moment, according to the sources.
A solution guaranteeing the safety of the fighters is directly linked to the ceasefire moving towards its second phase, mediators from Qatar, Turkey, and Egypt are stressing.
They are “exerting extensive efforts” to overcome any obstacles hindering its implementation, the sources said.
Hamas hands over Israeli soldier’s body
One source added that Hamas recently complied with the mediators’ request to hand over the body of Israeli soldier Hadar Goldin, who was killed during the 2014 Gaza war, in order to “prevent Israel from exploiting the issue to obstruct the fulfilment of the ceasefire’s terms”.
Israel received Goldin’s body on Sunday evening.
There are around 200 fighters trapped in the Israeli-controlled Rafah area, located beyond the ‘Yellow Line’. Their ordeal in the southern Gaza area has been described as a potential risk to the fragile ceasefire, as the truce now enters its second month.
Last week, Egyptian mediators proposed that the fighters surrender their arms to Cairo and give details of the tunnels there so they can be destroyed, in exchange for their safe passage to other areas of the enclave. This was not publicly accepted by Hamas or Israel.
Earlier, the Israeli army’s Chief of General Staff, Eyal Zamir, threatened to “kill” the trapped fighters if Goldin’s body was not returned.
The US however is reportedly pressuring Israel to permit a safe passage for the fighters, so as not to jeopardise the ceasefire, which has already been violated multiple times by Israel. According to Israel media, Tel Aviv has refused this, describing it as a “dangerous precedent”.
On Monday, Turkish security sources confirmed that Ankara facilitated the return of the soldier’s remains, in a statement to the Anadolu agency.
The officials described the move as Hamas’s “clear demonstration” to remain committed to the ceasefire’s obligations.
Turkey has been an active mediator in the Gaza war, while having publicly condemned Israel’s genocidal attacks there. Israel, however, is rejecting any Turkish involvement in a multinational force set to have an active role in post-war Gaza.
Turkey recently issued arrest warrants for 37 Israeli officials over the genocide in Gaza, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Israel Katz, sparking furious Israeli condemnation.
Jared Kushner arrives in Israel
US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, arrived in Israel on Sunday to follow up on the ceasefire’s developments, in his second visit in three weeks, Israeli media said.
On Sunday, Israeli newspaper Haaretz said that Kushner arrived in Tel Aviv alongside US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff “to discuss the implementation of the second phase of President Donald Trump’s ceasefire plan for Gaza,” which comes amid the trapped fighters crisis.
Kushner, who worked as Trump’s adviser during his first term, is set to meet Netanyahu and other top officials.
