HAMAS demanded today that any ceasefire deal in the Gaza conflict must result in a permanent end to Israel’s military onslaught.

The group also accused the Israeli government of deliberately disrupting the ceasefire negotiations and adding “new conditions.” 

Meanwhile, the Israeli military said that it had recovered the bodies of six of the hostages taken in the October 7 Hamas attack that prompted Israel’s invasion.

Hamas spokesman Basem Naim said that the movement supported the three-phase plan first outlined by US President Joe Biden on May 31 and then endorsed by the United Nations security council on June 11.

The proposal involves a six-week ceasefire, the withdrawal of Israeli forces from populated areas of Gaza, the return of displaced Palestinians to their homes, a surge in deliveries of humanitarian aid to the besieged territory and an exchange of Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners.

The second phase would bring further detainee swaps, a lasting ceasefire and the Israeli military’s total withdrawal from Gaza. 

Finally, the bodies of the deceased would be exchanged and a reconstruction plan for the devastated enclave would be put into effect.

However, Mr Naim accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of deliberately disrupting the process by conducting new attacks and seeking additional measures.

"What was Netanyahu’s response to all these initiatives and proposals? More massacres and killings,” the spokesman said, mentioning the examples of the Mawasi massacre, the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran and the massacre at al-Tabin school in the al-Daraj neighbourhood of Gaza.

Mr Naim said the new conditions include an Israeli refusal to withdraw from the Rafah border crossing and the Philadelphi corridor between Gaza and Egypt, and a lack of commitment to negotiations on bridging the first and second phases of the proposal.

Nonetheless, speaking at the Democratic National Convention on Monday, Mr Biden accused Hamas of “backing away” from the deal agreed by Israel.

Meanwhile, Israel said its forces had recovered the six hostages’ bodies during an overnight operation in southern Gaza and that it had identified the remains of Chaim Perry, Yoram Metzger, Avraham Munder, Alexander Dancyg, Nadav Popplewell and Yagev Buchshtav. 

Mr Netanyahu said: “The state of Israel will continue to make every effort to return all of our hostages, both alive and dead.”

Hamas is still believed to hold around 110 hostages, though Israeli authorities estimate that around a third of them are dead.

Early today, an Israeli air strike in central Gaza killed five children and their mother, according to the nearby al-Aqsa Martyrs hospital.