U.S. President Joe Biden said Thursday he doesn’t expect to reach a cease-fire deal for Gaza in the near future, while an American-backed proposal with global support has not been fully embraced by Israel or Hamas. Biden said international leaders at the Group of Seven summit in Italy had discussed the cease-fire, but when asked by reporters if a truce deal wound be reached soon, Biden replied simply, “No.” Earlier Thursday, U.S. national security adviser Jake Sullivan pushed back against assertions that Israel isn’t fully committed to the cease-fire proposal with Hamas. “Israel has supplied this proposal. It has been sitting on the table for some time. Israel has not contradicted or walked that back,” Sullivan said. Hamas responded to the plan by offering amendments, and Sullivan said the goal is “to figure out how we work to bridge the remaining gaps and get to a deal.” Hamas says the requested changes aim to guarantee a permanent cease-fire and complete Israeli troop withdrawal from Gaza. The cease-fire proposal announced by Biden includes those provisions, but Hamas has expressed wariness whether Israel will implement the terms.
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Quick Read
- U.S. President Joe Biden said Thursday he doesn’t expect to reach a cease-fire deal for Gaza in the near future, as an American-backed proposal with global support has not been fully embraced by Israel or Hamas.
- Biden remarked that international leaders at the Group of Seven summit in Italy discussed the cease-fire, but when asked if a truce deal would be reached soon, Biden simply replied, “No.”
- U.S. national security adviser Jake Sullivan said Israel has not contradicted or walked back the proposal and that the goal is to bridge remaining gaps and get to a deal.
- Hamas has responded to the proposal by offering amendments aimed at guaranteeing a permanent cease-fire and a complete Israeli troop withdrawal from Gaza.
- The ongoing Israel-Hamas war has resulted in more than 37,100 deaths according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between combatants and civilians.
- Palestinians in Gaza are facing widespread hunger due to the war largely cutting off the flow of food, medicine, and other supplies, with over 1 million in Gaza potentially facing severe starvation by mid-July.
- The conflict began after Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on southern Israel, which killed about 1,200 people and abducted around 250.
- Spain and Turkey called for international action to end the Israel-Hamas war, emphasizing the need for more aid to Palestinians.
- At a bilateral trade summit in Madrid, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez urged other countries to follow Spain, Ireland, and Norway in recognizing a Palestinian state.
- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called on the U.S. and U.N. Security Council members to lobby Israel for a cease-fire.
The Associated Press has the story:
Biden says no Gaza cease-fire deal soon, as mediators work to bridge gaps
Newslooks- BORGO EGNAZIA, Italy —(AP)
U.S. President Joe Biden said Thursday he doesn’t expect to reach a cease-fire deal for Gaza in the near future, as an American-backed proposal with global support has not been fully embraced by Israel or Hamas. Biden said international leaders at the Group of Seven summit in Italy had discussed the cease-fire, but when asked by reporters if a truce deal wound be reached soon, Biden replied simply, “No.”
Earlier Thursday, U.S. national security adviser Jake Sullivan pushed back against assertions that Israel isn’t fully committed to the cease-fire proposal with Hamas.
“Israel has supplied this proposal. It has been sitting on the table for some time. Israel has not contradicted or walked that back,” Sullivan said. Hamas has responded to the plan by offering amendments, and Sullivan said the goal is “to figure out how we work to bridge the remaining gaps and get to a deal.”
Hamas says the requested changes aim to guarantee a permanent cease-fire and complete Israeli troop withdrawal from Gaza. The cease-fire proposal announced by Biden includes those provisions, but Hamas has expressed wariness whether Israel will implement the terms.
Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza has killed more than 37,100 people, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between combatants and civilians in its count. Palestinians are facing widespread hunger because the war has largely cut off the flow of food, medicine and other supplies. U.N. agencies say over 1 million in Gaza could experience the highest level of starvation by mid-July.
Israel launched the war after Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack, in which militants stormed into southern Israel, killed some 1,200 people — mostly civilians — and abducted about 250.
Spain and Turkey urge international community to act to stop the war in Gaza
MADRID — Spain and Turkey called on the international community to take action to end the eight-month war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.
At a bilateral trade summit in Madrid on Thursday, the two NATO members reiterated calls to halt the fighting and deliver more aid to Palestinians enduring a humanitarian crisis in the war-ravaged territory.
“For too long the international community has looked the other way,” Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said at a news conference. “It has thought that without resolving this conflict we could live in peace and stability. What has happened during these eight months has opened the eyes of the world.”
Sánchez also demanded the release of hostages held by Hamas.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan urged the United States and the other U.N. Security Council members to lobby Israel. On Monday, the Security Council overwhelmingly approved its first resolution endorsing a cease-fire plan, but neither Israel nor Hamas has fully embraced it.
Spain, Ireland and Norway formally recognized a Palestinian state on May 28. Turkey did so in 1988. Sánchez urged other countries to follow in their footsteps.
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Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Gaza at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war
