Hamas released a video Saturday showing two hostages alive as it studied Israel’s latest proposal for a cease-fire, in an apparent bid to increase pressure on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to call off a major offensive that would deepen the war in Gaza.

The Palestinian militant group’s military wing posted a video showing American Israeli citizen Keith Siegel, 64, and Israeli Omri Miran, 47, who spoke briefly in the video.

Israel’s offer of a cease-fire in exchange for the release of hostages is in response to the group’s position delivered to mediators on April 13, senior Hamas official Khalil Al-Hayya said in a statement. The group will submit a response once it’s finished studying it, he said, offering no specific timeline.

Earlier this week, the U.S. and 17 other nations pressed Hamas to release all hostages, including their own citizens being held in Gaza, in a bid to revive talks that have stalled in recent weeks, and to unlock more humanitarian aid for the coastal enclave. Hamas is designated a terrorist organization by the U.S., the EU and others.

Netanyahu has faced increasing calls to reach a truce with Hamas amid international concerns about his plans for an attack on the city of Rafah in southern Gaza, where a million refugees are sheltering.

Israel has long signaled an intention to launch a ground operation in Rafah to achieve its goal of destroying Hamas. Israeli military officials estimate 5,000 to 8,000 Hamas fighters are holed up there, along with some of its leaders, representing the last line of its defense.

Protests inside Israel over the fate of the hostages are also escalating, especially since Hamas released a recent video of a 23-year-old U.S.-Israeli citizen whose mother has been the most prominent campaigner for efforts to secure the detainees’ release. That’s spurred calls for Netanyahu to step down, with many accusing the long-time prime minister of prolonging the war to hang onto office despite his failure in preventing Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on southern Israel.

Thousands gathered in central Tel Aviv late Saturday including relatives of Gaza detainees demanding a hostage deal and early elections. “Netanyahu is blinded by power — he has to go,” one demonstrator, Evyatar Gol, told Bloomberg News.

Former prime minister and opposition leader Yair Lapid joined the rally. “Netanyahu you have a majority among the people of Israel for a deal,” he said on X, formerly Twitter.

Israel told a high-level Egyptian delegation which visited Friday that it’s made significant concessions and that the latest offer represents a “last-minute opportunity” for an agreement before it enters Rafah, Channel 12 reported, citing a senior Israeli official who wasn’t identified.

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