Hamas is seriously considering a Qatar-backed proposal to hold a ceasefire with Israel for five years, Palestinian Arab news sources report Tuesday. 

Reportedly, the organization’s senior official Moussa Abu Marzuk, who left abruptly from Gaza last week less than two weeks after his arrival, visited Qatar on Saturday and held meetings on the subject in which he said Hamas was inclined to accept the offer.

This is partly due to the split between Hamas and the Palestinian Authority (PA) as well as Salafists’ attempts to provoke an all-out war – and to the expectation of Israel acquiescing, an Egyptian official told Maan news. 

Marzuk held the meetings in Doha with Khaled Meshaal, and in partial cooperation with Bulgarian Foreign Minister Nickolay Mladenov, who is serving as a top envoy in the Middle East for the United Nations (UN). 

Several reports reveal that Hamas is suffering under the strain of Salafist groups – more than one of which pledges allegiance to Islamic State (ISIS) – and is unable to keep views more extremist than its own from undermining its power. The resulting rocket fire from these groups on Israeli civilians is begging another war, a move which analysts say is a means of drawing Israel into the power conflict over Gaza.