Blinken: Israel accepts US proposal for ceasefire in Gaza

U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said in Tel Aviv on Monday evening that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accepted the American "compromise proposal" for a ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip, and now it is the turn of the Hamas group to agree to this plan, UNN writes with reference to Voice of America.

Details

"Now it's Hamas's turn to do the same," Blinken told reporters, without specifying whether the questions posed by the Hamas group had been taken into account. He added that, with the help of mediators from Egypt, Qatar and the United States, the parties should "get together and complete the process.

Blinken's ninth visit to the Middle East since the start of the Gaza war in October 2023 comes as the United States, Egypt and Qatar are trying to finalize a ceasefire and hostage deal between Israel and Hamas.

The US presented a compromise proposal at the ceasefire talks last week in Doha. The talks are scheduled to resume this week in Cairo.

"We never give up," Blinken said when asked if the time for a deal might finally be running out. He had a one-on-one meeting with Netanyahu that lasted two and a half hours.

An Israeli government spokesman told reporters on Monday that Netanyahu is "firmly committed to the principle" that the Israel Defense Forces will maintain a physical presence in the Philadelphia Corridor - on the border between the Gaza Strip and Egypt - to prevent what they claim is a Hamas infiltration.

Earlier, Hamas accused Netanyahu of undermining the efforts of the mediators. Sami Abu Zuhri, a member of the Hamas political bureau, rejected claims that there were signs of progress after two days of talks in Doha, calling them "illusions.

Addendum

The need to reach an agreement is growing amid fears of widespread regional escalation if Iran and its Lebanese proxy group Hezbollah retaliate against Israel for the assassination of a senior Hezbollah operative in Beirut and Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran.

Israel has claimed responsibility for the attack in Beirut, but not for the attack in Tehran, although, as the newspaper points out, it is assumed that Israel is behind Haniyeh's murder.

This week, Blinken will travel to Egypt and Qatar for talks with Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi and Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.