Israel and the Palestinian Hamas movement have made progress in negotiations to settle the crisis in the Gaza Strip, but the number of Israeli hostages to be released at the initial stage of the deal has not yet been agreed, the Ynet portal reported, citing an informed source of Hamas.
"Unprecedented progress has been made in the negotiations, but the final decision remains Netanyahu's," the portal quoted a Palestinian movement source as saying.
It is noted that one of the reasons for the disagreement between the parties at this stage is the number and specific names of the hostages that Hamas should release. Israel is demanding the release of more hostages as part of the deal than the Palestinians are offering.
