TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Monday that Israel has accepted the bridging proposal. Differences that hinder a ceasefire He also spoke about the release of hostages in Gaza and called on Hamas to do the same, but did not say whether the concerns raised by the extremist group had been addressed.
The crucial negotiations have taken on added urgency in recent days as diplomats hope a deal will thwart revenge by Iran and Lebanon’s Hezbollah for the targeted killings of two leading militants that they blame on Israel. More destructive regional wars.
Blinken is due to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for two-and-a-half hours earlier in the day, before traveling to Egypt and Qatar for further negotiations. The three mediators have been in talks for months. The war in GazaNegotiations repeatedly stalled.
“In my very constructive meeting today with Prime Minister Netanyahu, he confirmed to me that Israel supports a bridging proposal,” Blinken told reporters, without disclosing what that proposal might contain. “The next crucial step is for Hamas to say ‘yes.'”
But he added that even if Hamas accepts the proposal, negotiators would continue to work in the coming days to reach a “clear understanding on the implementation of the agreement.” He said there were still “complex issues” that required “tough decisions by the leadership,” but gave no details.
Hamas has said it is losing confidence in the United States as a mediator and has criticised American negotiators. Standing on Israel’s side Israel did not say whether the proposal addressed Hamas’ demands for control of two strategic corridors inside the Gaza Strip, which it says is unfeasible. Other issues that have long plagued the negotiations.
Netanyahu said he had “productive and important meetings” with Secretary of State Blinken and “thanks to the United States for understanding our vital security interests and for our joint efforts to secure the release of the hostages,” adding that efforts were underway to free as many hostages as possible in the first phase of a ceasefire agreement.
Blinken’s ninth mission to the Middle East since the conflict began will see mediators, including the U.S. expressed renewed optimism An agreement appears to be close, but Hamas has expressed strong unhappiness with the latest proposal, and Israel has said there are areas where it cannot compromise.
Blinken said the same day that it was a “definitive moment” and “probably the last” opportunity to release the hostages and secure a ceasefire.
“It is also time to make sure that nobody takes any action that would disrupt this process,” he said, referring to Iran. “So we are working to make sure that there is no escalation, no provocation, no action that would prevent this agreement from coming to fruition, or even that would spread the conflict elsewhere and make it more escalating.”
Mediators are due to meet again this week to try to consolidate a ceasefire, and Blinken is due to visit Egypt and Qatar, where Hamas is based, on Tuesday.
The war began on October 7 when thousands of Hamas-led militants invaded Israel, killing about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting about 250. Of those, about 110 were Believed to still be in GazaIsraeli officials say about a third of the hostages have been killed, however. More than 100 hostages were released during a week-long ceasefire in November.
Dozens of Israelis demonstrated outside the Tel Aviv hotel where Blinken is staying, holding up photos of hostages and demanding an immediate ceasefire.
“We know that there can’t be a deal without significant support from the U.S. government,” said Yehuda Cohen, whose 20-year-old son, Nimrod, is being held hostage in Gaza. “We want to say it loud and clear: Mr. Blinken, Mr. Antony Blinken, please pressure Prime Minister Netanyahu to make a deal at all costs, because we want my son to be free.”
Israel’s counterattack on Gaza Killed over 40,000 Palestinians The war has turned the region of 2.3 million people into a humanitarian disaster, according to local health officials. Aid groups now fear a polio outbreak.
Blinken said the United States shares those concerns and is working with Israel to develop plans for a vaccine to be available in the “coming weeks,” adding that “this is urgent and critically important.”
Last weekend, Egypt, Qatar and the United States, the three countries mediating the ceasefire proposal, reported progress on an agreement under which Israel would halt most of its military operations in Gaza and release some Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the release of hostages.
The proposal involves a three-phase process in which Hamas would release all hostages taken in the October 7 attack, in exchange for Israel withdrawing its troops from Gaza and releasing Palestinian prisoners.
Hamas has accused Israel of adding new demands, including maintaining a military presence along the Gaza-Egypt border to prevent arms smuggling, and along the line that bisects the territory so it can search Palestinians returning to their homes in the north to prevent militants from sneaking in. Israel said these were not new demands but a clarification of earlier proposals.
Hamas, in a statement late on Sunday, accused Netanyahu of continuing to put up obstacles to an agreement by demanding new conditions and of wanting to prolong the war. Hamas said the mediators’ latest proposal was a capitulation to Israel.
“The new proposal meets Prime Minister Netanyahu’s conditions,” Hamas said.
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Samy Magdy contributed to this report from Cairo.
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