Hamas: The proposal is not what we have agreed to
The news that Israel has accepted an American proposal for a cease-fire "raises many question marks", Hamas chief Osama Hamdan told Reuters.
That is not what has been presented or approved so far, he continues.
- We have told the mediators that we do not need new negotiations on a ceasefire in Gaza, we need to agree on a mechanism to implement it.
Blinken on Monday gave few details about the proposal now on the table and accepted by Netanyahu.
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Antony Blinken: Israel has accepted the US proposal for a ceasefire in Gaza
Israel has agreed to an American proposal for a cease-fire in Gaza, states US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, according to AP. The agreement would also mean a step towards the release of the hostages held in Gaza.
- In a very constructive meeting with Benjamin Netanyahu today, he confirmed that Israel supports the transition agreement. The next step is for Hamas to say yes.
The US, Egypt and Qatar have been trying for months to reach an agreement on a ceasefire between the terrorist group Hamas and Israel.
Blinken gave few details on Monday evening about the agreement that is on the table. Previously, the negotiations were said to have stalled, among other things, because Israel demanded to gain control over "strategic corridors" inside Gaza - something that Hamas said is out of the question.
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Netanyahu: The goal is to free the "maximum number" of hostages
The ceasefire proposal that Israel has accepted must lead to the release of a "maximum" number of hostages already in the first phase. This is what the country's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says shortly after he finished a several-hour-long meeting with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken earlier today.
- I want to clarify: The goal is for a maximum number of live hostages to be freed already in the first phase of the agreement.
It is unclear exactly what the agreement looks like. Blinken has called on Hamas to accept it, but the terrorist group has yet to comment publicly on the matter.
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The US sees the "best and perhaps last" chance for a ceasefire
US President Joe Biden is still hopeful that the US proposal for a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas negotiated in Qatar will come to fruition. He told reporters at Camp David yesterday, according to several media outlets.
- We don't give up. There is still the possibility.
On Sunday, Foreign Minister Antony Blinken traveled to Tel Aviv as part of Washington's intensified pressure. It is Blinken's ninth trip to the region since the war began ten months ago.
- This is a decisive moment, probably the best and perhaps the last opportunity to bring home the hostages, to bring about a ceasefire and move everyone in the direction of lasting peace and security, Blinken said according to AFP.
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