The White House says it is developing a new cease-fire and hostage deal proposal with its Egyptian and Qatari counterparts to try to bring about an agreement between Israel and Hamas to end the war in Gaza. National security spokesperson John Kirby said the “executions” of six hostages, including one American, by Hamas, “underscores the sense of urgency” in the talks. Kirby declined to frame the latest proposal as a “final” or “take-it-or-leave-it” offer to the parties, but he also declined to speculate on what might happen if the latest press for a deal wasn’t successful.
Quick Read
- The White House is working on a new cease-fire and hostage deal with Egypt and Qatar to negotiate an agreement between Israel and Hamas to end the Gaza war.
- National Security spokesperson John Kirby highlighted the urgency of the talks, citing the “executions” of six hostages, including one American, by Hamas.
- Kirby clarified that while this is not a “final” or “take-it-or-leave-it” offer, the White House is pressing for an agreement but did not speculate on potential outcomes if the deal fails.
- Addressing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s insistence on maintaining a military presence along Gaza’s border with Egypt, Kirby noted that Israel had already agreed to pull its troops from densely populated areas, including the Philadelphi corridor, in the first phase of a cease-fire deal.
- Kirby refrained from commenting on the widespread protests in Israel urging Netanyahu to reach an agreement, stating, “I’ll let the Israeli people speak for themselves.”
The Associated Press has the story:
White House is working on new Gaza cease-fire and hostage deal
Newslooks- WASHINGTON — (AP)
The White House says it is developing a new cease-fire and hostage deal proposal with its Egyptian and Qatari counterparts to try to bring about an agreement between Israel and Hamas to end the war in Gaza. National security spokesperson John Kirby said the “executions” of six hostages, including one American, by Hamas, “underscores the sense of urgency” in the talks. Kirby declined to frame the latest proposal as a “final” or “take-it-or-leave-it” offer to the parties, but he also declined to speculate on what might happen if the latest press for a deal wasn’t successful.
Responding to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s insistence that Israel would maintain a military presence along the entirety of Gaza’s border with Egypt, Kirby noted that Israel had already agreed that, as part of the first phase of a cease-fire deal, it would pull its troops from densely populated areas, including in the so-called Philadelphi corridor. That has emerged as a late obstacle to an agreement. “That’s the proposal that Israel had agreed to,” he said.
Kirby declined to address widespread protests inside Israel calling on Netanyahu to reach an agreement, saying, “I’ll let the Israeli people speak for themselves.”
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