Both Netanyahu and Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar said:
1. Israel was prepared to negotiate the next phase of the ceasefire
2. but was insisting on more hostages being freed during the talks.

“The commitment to bringing in this amount [of supplies to Gaza] was in the first phase,” Sa’ar said at a press conference.
“The first phase ended, and we are implementing the principle of no free meals.”

Israel announced it was adopting a previously unpublicized “Witkoff plan” early Sunday as the first stage of the ceasefire deal expired and the sides failed to negotiate a second phase.

According to Israel’s account of Witkoff’s proposal, the halt in fighting would extend until the end of Passover on April 19

Under the plan:
1. half of the remaining hostages — living and dead — would be released on the first day of the extended ceasefire,
2. and the remaining captives would be released at the end of the period if a permanent ceasefire is reached.

Netanyahu denied that Israel was shirking its commitment to negotiate the second phase, saying Witkoff proposed the extension after he understood:
“He even defined his proposal as a corridor for negotiations on phase two,” said Netanyahu. “Israel is ready for this.”