Tel Aviv, Israel
CNN
—

As Israel and Hamas move closer to a possible ceasefire and hostage-taking agreement, a small number of families whose loved ones remain trapped in Gaza are saying “no” to a deal.

Many fringe members of the Tikva (Hope) Forum, including settlers in the occupied West Bank, represent right-wing ideologies. They reject the release of Palestinian prisoners in Israel as part of the deal and argue that a partial release of Israeli hostages from Gaza is unacceptable. Instead, they insist that defeating Hamas through strong military action should be the top priority and is the best hostage recovery strategy.

The Tikva Forum, which says it was founded to bring the hostages home “from a place of strength, faith, national responsibility and concern for the unity and security of all Israelis,” is different from the Hostage Families Forum , the majority of which represents the hostage families and led protests calling for a ceasefire and a hostage deal.

Tzvika Mor, co-founder of the Tikva Forum, believes his son Eitan, who is being held in Gaza, wants him to oppose the deal.

“This deal that Prime Minister (Benjamin) Netanyahu is talking about today is very dangerous for my son and for most of the hostages, especially the young men and the soldiers who will remain in Gaza for decades,” Mor told CNN on Wednesday.

“I definitely know that Eitan wants me to ensure that the state of Israel is safe,” he said, adding that if his son had not been in captivity, “he would have been a soldier in Gaza, Lebanon or Syria “would have been.

The Israeli government expects an agreement on a ceasefire and hostage-taking deal in Gaza to be announced later on Wednesday or Thursday, two sources familiar with the matter told CNN.

The first phase of the deal is expected to include the release of children, women, the sick and the elderly held in Gaza, while freeing hundreds of Palestinians from Israeli prisons, some of whom have been accused of killing Israelis.

Boaz Miran, who also belongs to the Tikva forum, is also against the deal. His brother Omri was kidnapped by Hamas-led militants from Kibbutz Nahal Oz in southern Israel on October 7, 2023, leaving behind his wife Lishay and their two young daughters. His brother is unlikely to be released in the first phase of the deal given the emphasis on women, children and the elderly.

Boaz, along with other families affiliated with the Tikva Forum, fought against the deal. Members of the group often share similar views to Israel’s far-right politicians who also oppose the deal, such as National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, who threatened to withdraw from Netanyahu’s coalition if a deal was signed, and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who said , a deal would be a “disaster.”

Both ministers are settlers with harsh views on the Palestinians.

Mor, the forum’s co-founder, lives in the Jewish settlement of Kiryat Arba near Hebron in the occupied West Bank. His son was kidnapped by Palestinian militants from the Nova festival on October 7. He said at least 15 families are attending the forum but that many prefer to stay out of the spotlight.

Miran and other Tikva Forum members reject the Gaza deal in its current form, saying the hostages should come back in one go and that Palestinian “terrorists” should not be released. “We believe that all prisoners should be returned in a single deal, from a position of strength,” Miran said.

“I am against this current deal because, firstly, it does not bring back all the prisoners. It will be a partial release, the rest will probably be neglected,” Miran told CNN on Wednesday.

He also believes that releasing Palestinian prisoners would be a disaster for Israel.

“We cannot have these monsters as our neighbors across the border. Sinwar was released as part of the (Gilad) Shalit deal (when the Israeli soldier was traded for over 1,000 prisoners in 2011), and look what he did to us,” he told CNN, referring to Yahya Sinwar , the mastermind of the October 7 attack, who was killed by Israel last year. “We cannot agree to a situation in which the released prisoners murder our people in the future.”

According to the Commission for Prisoners’ Affairs and the Palestinian Prisoners’ Association, Israel is holding at least 10,000 Palestinian prisoners, including 3,376 people held in administrative detention – a controversial procedure that allows Israeli authorities to detain people indefinitely without trial for security reasons. sometimes based on evidence that is not made public. According to the Commission for Prisoners’ Affairs and the Palestinian Prisoners’ Association, 95 children are currently in administrative detention.

The proposed deal would be implemented in three phases, the first of which would last 42 days. The first phase will see the release of 33 hostages held by Hamas and its allies since October 7, including women, children, men over 50 and the wounded. In return, Israel would release “many hundreds” of Palestinian prisoners, including Palestinians convicted of killing Israelis, an Israeli official said.

According to the Israeli official, negotiations on the second and third phases of a ceasefire agreement aimed at ending the war would begin on the 16th day of the agreement’s implementation.

Miran said that while he celebrated the release of every hostage, the deal in its current form would mean that the joy of some families would mean sadness for others, adding: “This deal will determine the fate of my brother Omri, who is in Rotting in the tunnels.” Hamas for the coming months or even years.”

The Israeli government believes that 98 hostages are still being held in Gaza – most of them kidnapped on October 7, 2023, and dozens of them are believed to be dead.

According to the United Nations, the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza has been raging for 15 months, turning Gaza into a wasteland and displacing at least 90% of Palestinians since October 2023. According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, more than 46,000 people were killed – mostly women and children.