Posted on 09/05/24
| News Source: Arutz-7
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told reporters on Thursday that it was incumbent on both Israel and Hamas to say yes on remaining issues to reach a Gaza ceasefire deal, Reuters reported.
Blinken told a news conference in Haiti that “nearly 90%” of the Gaza ceasefire deal is agreed, but there are critical issues remaining where there are gaps, including the issue of the Philadelphi corridor.
"I expect in the coming days, we will share with Israel, and they (Qatar and Egypt) will share with Hamas our thoughts, the three of us, on exactly how to resolve" the remaining issues, Blinken said, according to Reuters.
Earlier this week, The Washington Post reported that the US has been engaging with Egypt and Qatar to outline a final "take it or leave it" deal.
This proposal is expected to be presented to the involved parties in the coming weeks, with the understanding that if they do not accept it, American-led negotiations may come to an end. It remains uncertain whether the discovery of the six hostages will make it more or less likely that Israel and Hamas will reach an agreement in the coming weeks.
The United States has been pushing an outline for a ceasefire and hostage release deal that President Joe Biden first laid out in May, but Hamas has continuously rejected every proposal that has been presented to it.
On Wednesday, Hamas released a statement in which it again rejected renewed negotiations on a ceasefire and hostage release deal and blamed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for the failure of the talks.
Hamas said there was no need for new ceasefire proposals for Gaza and called for pressure to be put on Israel to agree to the US plan that the terrorist group claimed it had already accepted.