US is ‘fed up’ with Netanyahu’s manoeuvring and deception: Analyst
Hassan Barari, an international affairs professor at Qatar University, has told Al Jazeera that Hamas and Israel are closer than ever to a ceasefire agreement, and that President Joe Biden’s administration wants to apply pressure to keep up the momentum.
“I think the American administration is fed up with Netanyahu’s manoeuvring and deceptions over the last two months. And this is true, especially when Hamas has agreed and has responded in a positive way to the American guideline and framework,” Barari said, adding that the questions remain over whether Israel is negotiating in good faith.
He added that the Israeli government itself is divided within its ranks between those who actually support a truce and those who are adamantly opposed to it because they want to continue the war.
“Those people, especially the right-wing people like [Finance Minister] Smotrich and [National Security Minister] Ben-Gvir, strongly believe that they can restore occupation of Gaza in order to pave the way for something similar [to] the West Bank,” he said.
“Netanyahu needs to probably leave his position as a fence-sitter and choose whether he wants to [be] ultranational Zionist or he wants to serve the interests of Israel. And those interests of Israel require the Palestinian state and require some sort of agreement with the Palestinians.”
Biden needs a ceasefire asap to have any chance of getting re-elected. There's little time left to mend the widening divide among the Democrats on the stance of Gaza. The longer this goes on, the more protest votes (or not voting) against Biden.
CNN already suggest in their title the latest round was initiated by Biden
A framework is in place on hostage, ceasefire deal after Biden-Netanyahu call, senior administration official says
https://www.cnn.com/2024/07/04/politics/biden-netanyahu-call/index.html
The framework for a hostage and ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas is “now in place” according to a senior administration official. That acknowledgement comes on the heels of President Joe Biden’s call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday.
The call came as Israel and Hamas appear to be on the brink of a framework agreement for a deal, an Israeli source familiar with the negotiations has told CNN. Hamas recently provided a response to the framework to Qatari and Egyptian mediators, a move Israeli officials believe will enable the two parties to enter detailed negotiations to reach an agreement. A deal, however, is still not finalized nor is it assured.
Forced evacuations creating ‘a humanitarian crisis within the crisis’: EU
EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell and European Commissioner for Crisis Management Janez Lenarcic have expressed their “concern” over Israeli army orders to evacuate more than 250,000 Palestinians from eastern Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip.
“This evacuation decision is certain to worsen overcrowding, and cause severe shortages in the already overwhelmed remaining hospitals, at a time when access to emergency medical care is critical,” the two wrote in a joint statement, adding that forced evacuations are creating “a humanitarian crisis within the crisis”.
“A ceasefire is all the more important now, and would make possible a surge of humanitarian assistance to Gaza as well as the release of all hostages,” they said.
