White House says goal is to get ceasefire deal finalised soon
US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan says Israel stands behind the UN-backed ceasefire proposal despite there being no public announcement by Netanyahu.
Sullivan, speaking on the sidelines of the G7 summit, said the aim is to bridge the remaining gaps with Hamas, which, the US says, issued a reply to the ceasefire proposal requesting several amendments, to quickly strike a deal.
Israel’s PM Netanyahu has repeatedly stressed that Israel will not end the war before defeating Hamas.
Hamas official says proposed amendments to ceasefire plan are ‘not significant’: Report
A senior Hamas official has told the Reuters news agency that the Palestinian group’s proposed amendments to a UN Security Council-backed ceasefire deal for Gaza are “not significant”.
The unnamed official said that among Hamas’s amendments are a demand for three “interconnected and continuous phases” of ceasefire, the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza, the release of 100 Palestinians with long-term sentences in Israeli prisons, and the lifting of Israel’s blockade of the besieged enclave’s borders.
Blinken discusses Israel’s war on Gaza and ceasefire prospects
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that some of the amendments proposed by Hamas to the United States’s proposal for a truce in Gaza are not “workable”, but efforts to reach an agreement are continuing.
G7 summit to discuss Gaza ceasefire
G7 leaders are meeting in Italy for a three-day summit to discuss global affairs.
US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said President Biden will push G7 allies to back continuing Gaza ceasefire negotiations and press Hamas to accept the UN-backed ceasefire plan.
The US can balk at Hamas all they want, but the essential differences between Israel and Hamas remain the same.
Hamas wants a guarantee that phase 1 flows over into phase 2 as outlined in the proposal: If after 6 weeks negotiations haven't been completed for phase 2, the ceasefire and negotiations will continue until phase 2 can begin. Netanyahu is only interested in phase 1, which they agree to, with the intent to abandon negotiations and continue the war after a hostage/prisoner exchange.
CNN calls it negotiations stutter
Negotiations stutter: A US-backed Israeli proposal for a ceasefire and hostage deal appears to be in limbo, with neither side yet publicly committing to the plan. In a statement, Hamas said it “has shown the necessary positivity in all stages of negotiations” to reach a “comprehensive and acceptable agreement based on the just demands of our people.” US Secretary of State Antony Blinken earlier questioned whether the militant group was “proceeding in good faith.”
Blinken you should check with your Israeli cronies whether they are proceeding in good faith. The only faith they seem to be proceeding with is total victory, complete destruction of Hamas (which would make negotiations with Hamas a moot point...)
I guess the one positive thing about the current negotiations is, so far Ben Gvir and Smotrich have kept their mouths shut. At least Israel still seems to be at the negotiation table.
