The Muslim fasting month of Ramadan has just begun, and the Jewish holiday of Passover is being celebrated this year between 12 and 20 April.
The proposal that Israel is now backing has been put forward by the US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, emphasizes Netanyahu's office.
But Hamas rejects an extension of the first phase of the ceasefire and insists that an agreement must be reached on phase two.
"The only way to achieve stability in the region and the return of the prisoners is to complete the implementation of the agreement", announces Hamas leader Mahmoud Mardawi in a statement to AFP early on Sunday.
Stranded negotiations
The second phase of the ceasefire was originally intended to pave the way for a more long-term and "sustainable" calm in the Gaza Strip, but the conditions for this have not yet been negotiated.
Representatives from Israel, Qatar, Egypt, and the USA have participated in the negotiations on the second phase in Cairo, Egypt. Hamas' case has been presented by Egyptian and Qatari mediators.
Earlier on Saturday, Hamas announced that no progress had been made in the negotiations and that they had rejected an extension of the first phase in line with a formulation proposed by Israel.
Permanent ceasefire
Israel claims that it is ready to initiate negotiations on all details of the proposal for an extended ceasefire if Hamas would "change its position", according to a statement from Netanyahu's office.
"On the first day of the plan, half of the living and deceased hostages will be released", writes Netanyahu's office about the American proposal, according to Haaretz. The remaining hostages will then be released "if an agreement on a permanent ceasefire is reached", according to the statement.
The Israeli statement came approximately at the same time as the first phase of the agreed ceasefire expired on Saturday. According to the agreement's terms, hostilities should not be resumed while negotiations on a second phase of the ceasefire are ongoing.
In the 42-day first phase of the ceasefire, terrorist-designated Hamas has released 33 hostages, including eight dead, in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinians detained by Israel.
