The sources told Reuters the disagreements stemmed from demands Israel has introduced since Hamas accepted a version of a ceasefire proposal unveiled by US President Joe Biden in May.
All the sources said Hamas was especially concerned about the latest demand to keep troops deployed along the Netzarim Corridor, an east-west strip Israel cleared during the current war that prevents Palestinians' free movement between north and south Gaza, as well as in a narrow border strip between the enclave and Egypt known as the Philadelphi Corridor.
The sources asked not to be named to speak freely about sensitive matters.
Israel's current grip on the Philadelphi Corridor gives it control of Gaza's frontier with Egypt, the enclave's only crossing that does not border Israel.
Hamas sees Israel as having changed its conditions and parameters "last-minute" and worries any concessions it makes would be met by more demands, one of the sources, who is close to the talks, told Reuters.
The second thing is that we are, at the same time, making an effort to return the hostages, on terms that will allow for the maximum number of hostages being released in the first stage of the deal. — Prime Minister of Israel (@IsraeliPM) pic.twitter.com/jCi5Wir5iFAugust 20, 2024
In a press statement on Sunday, Hamas said the proposal arising from last week's talks was too close to Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu's recent positions setting new conditions.
It urged the mediators to stick to the implementation of a July version of the framework agreement, rather than starting new negotiations.
In a statement prior to the talks last week, Netanyahu's office denied making new demands, saying its position built on the previous proposal.
In the statement, the office said Israel's May proposal stated that only unarmed civilians would be allowed to return to the northern part of the Gaza Strip, crossing the Netzarim Corridor.
The office said Israel's new proposal, first presented at a meeting of mediators in Rome on July 27, was that an agreed-upon mechanism should be established to assure this, implying but not specifically mentioning an Israeli military presence at Netzarim to prevent the movement of Hamas fighters.
According to a second source close to the talks, Israel proposed that an agreement for the return of non-combatants to the north half of Gaza would be agreed upon "at a later date".
That was seen by some of the mediators and Hamas as Israel backtracking on a previous commitment to withdraw from the Netzarim corridor and allow free movement inside Gaza, the source said.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken concluded a whirlwind trip to the region on Tuesday, seeking a breakthrough.
After meeting Netanyahu, Blinken said Israel had accepted a new US proposal aimed at narrowing differences between Israel and Hamas' latest positions.
He urged Hamas to do the same.
"Once that happens we also have to complete the detailed implementation agreements that go along with putting the ceasefire into effect," he said at a news conference on Tuesday.
The sides have not released what Blinken called a bridging proposal, and Reuters has not seen a copy.
A diplomatic source, describing Israel's latest demands in the US-led talks, said it appeared the United States had accepted changes proposed by Netanyahu, including on a continued Israeli military deployment in the two corridors.
One US official disputed that suggestion, saying the negotiations on the "implementation" would aim to hash out disagreements over the Philadelphi and Netzarim corridors, the number of Palestinian prisoners and who to release among other topics.
Blinken also pushed back on any suggestion of Israeli troops occupying Gaza on a long term basis, saying at the press conference that the schedule and location of Israeli military withdrawals were very clear in the agreement.
The next round of talks is expected in Cairo in the coming days, based around the US bridging proposal.
The United States, along with mediators Qatar and Egypt, is trying to keep negotiations alive to end Israel's 10-month-campaign in Gaza and return remaining hostages seized by Hamas and its allies on October 7.
The war began on October 7 when Hamas gunmen stormed into Israeli communities and military bases, killing about 1200 people and abducting about 250 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.
More than 40,000 people have since been killed in Gaza, according to Palestinian health authorities.
