Israel open to new cease-fire to free more hostages, president says

As heavy fighting continues inside the Gaza Strip, Israel is willing to consider a second temporary truce with Hamas militants to secure the release of additional hostages and ensure that more humanitarian aid reaches trapped Palestinian civilians, President Isaac Herzog said Tuesday.

Speaking to the Washington-based Atlantic Council think tank, Mr. Herzog said he wasn’t involved with the details of the negotiations, but confirmed that discussions were ongoing for a release of hostages, similar to one in late November that freed more than 100 Israelis and other foreign nationals abducted during Hamas’ Oct. 7 terrorist rampage that resulted in the death of at least 1,200 Israelis. Hundreds of Palestinians held in Israeli jails were also released.

“Israel is willing to enter another humanitarian pause,” Mr. Herzog said. “If [Hamas leaders] refuse to go into any negotiations on prisoners and hostage releases and exchanges, we will continue as such with no limitations.”

As president, Mr. Herzog is Israel’s head of state with mainly ceremonial functions. He plays a role in forming a government, currently led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and his voice carries some weight in shaping Israeli public opinion and political debate.

Mr. Herzog said Tuesday it was up to Yahya Sinwar, the head of Hamas military operations in Gaza, and other leaders of the Palestinian group to make a hostage exchange happen.

“We want to bring the hostages back. This is a basic humanitarian duty, and that’s what people of morality do — bring them back home,” he said. “We will do whatever it takes through various means to bring them back home.”

There was little sign of any movement toward peace on the ground in Gaza on Tuesday: The Associated Press reported that Israel targeted towns across southern Gaza on Tuesday with airstrikes, killing at least 45 Palestinians and pressing ahead with its offensive despite rising international alarm. The Israeli defense minister, Yoav Gallant, warned the campaign in Gaza’s south will persist for months as Israeli forces raided and detained staff at two of the last functioning hospitals in Gaza’s north.

Hamas has vowed to continue its resistance despite a Palestinian death toll reportedly nearing 20,000. In New York, the U.N. Security Council postponed for a second straight day a vote on a new resolution for an immediate halt to the fighting, with the U.S. facing pressure from Western allies not to block the proposal.

Mr. Herzog’s comments came a day after Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin announced in Bahrain the formation of an international task force to protect international shipping passing through a Red Sea chokepoint that has been the scene of several recent attacks by Yemen-based Houthi rebel forces on merchant ships.

“The recent escalation in reckless Houthi attacks originating from Yemen threatens the free flow of commerce, endangers innocent mariners, and violates international law,” Secretary Austin said Monday during a tour of the region. “The Red Sea is a critical waterway that has been essential to freedom of navigation and a major commercial coordinator that facilitates international trade.”

The U.S.-led maritime mission, code-named “Prosperity Guardian,” is in response to Yemen’s Houthi rebels who have declared war against Israel and vowed to strike ships passing along the Bab al-Mandab Strait that are connected to what they call the “Zionist state.”

The United Kingdom, Bahrain, Canada, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Seychelles, and Spain have agreed to take part in Prosperity Guardian. Some will conduct joint patrols through the area while others will provide intelligence support. 

On Tuesday, Mohammad Abdel-Salam, a spokesman for the Iran-backed Houthis, said the group would continue targeting any Israeli-linked vessels passing near Yemen.

“The American-formed coalition is to protect Israel and militarize the sea without any justification,” he wrote on social media. It “will not stop Yemen from continuing its legitimate operations in support of Gaza.”

Houthi attacks on merchant vessels have prompted several companies to suspend operations in the Red Sea or divert traffic to other routes. On Monday, the oil and gas company BP was the latest to join the growing list, which also includes international shipping giants like A.P. Moeller-Maersk and the Evergreen Marine Corporation.

• This article was based in part on wire service reports.