(Photo : AFP via Getty Images)
Palestinians check the damage in the aftermath of Israeli bombing in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip earlier this month. A report by the Biden administration said Israel's use of American weapons may have violated international humanitarian laws.
Hamas has said it was ready to accept a cease-fire deal after seven months of war but Israel says it does not appear to be an agreement it backs.
The deal was crafted by Egypt and Qatar, the Associated Press reported.
Israeli officials said the deal is "unknown" to both the U.S. and Israel, according to the Times of Israel.
Another Isreali official told media personality Avi Mayer that the the announcment was "a trick," that refers to a one-sided proposal that did not receive Israeli approval and could be a delaying tactic.
One Israeli official told Reuters that the announcement appears to be a ruse designed to cast Israel as the side refusing a deal.
Word of the deal came hours after Israel ordered about 100,000 Palestinians to begin evacuating Rafah ahead of an expected ground invasion there.
Videos posted on social media showed celebrations in Rafah after the supposed cease-fire was reached.
🚨 What is heard of gunfire in various areas of the Gāza Strip is just people’s celebrations over Hāmas’ approval of the proposal, and there is no truce yet. Only the Hāmas movement agreed to the proposal.
— 🔻 mari 🔻 (@marisaturno_) May 6, 2024
“We await the official response...We ask God for an imminent relief.” pic.twitter.com/4zOUV1nKMp
Israel has claimed that the city is home to thousands of militants for the Palestinian Islamist group and that capturing the city is necessary for victory.
But more than a million Palestinians have sought refuge in Rafah and Western nations have raised concerns about the possibility of a high-casualty operation.
United States officials have repeatedly said that Israel shouldn't attack Rafah and more aid was needed for refugees.
In the six months since the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks on Israel that sparked the ongoing war, the situation inside Gaza has grown increasingly dire. At least 33,037 Palestinians have been killed, including more than 13,000 children, according to Gaza's Hamas-run health ministry.
Specifics of the deal were not immediately released, including if it is a temporary agreement or will bring about an end to the war and an Israeli withdrawal.
Israel invaded Gaza with a goal of eliminating Hamas after the terror group invaded Israel, killing more than 1,000 people and kidnapping hundreds back into Gaza.
The fate of the remaining hostages was unknown.
