Secretary of State Antony Blinken departed the Middle East after the United States and Israel quickly closed on the latest hostage deal proposed by Hamas on Thursday.
Blinken spent much of last week negotiating with Israel, Egypt, Qatar and Hamas over the possible release of hostages. The proposal sent by Hamas late Tuesday includes items that Israel and the United States deemed unrealistic, and Mr. Blinken is now departing with little progress.
“It’s clear that some of the things that Hamas has sent back are absolutely duds,” Blinken acknowledged Wednesday. “But at the same time, we think there is room to continue to pursue an agreement. And these things are always negotiations. It’s not about flipping a light switch. It’s not a ‘yes’ or ‘no.’ ” It’s always back and forth. ”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was less charitable in his words, calling Hamas’ proposals “delusional” and vowing again that the war in Gaza would continue until the terror group was completely eradicated.
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Secretary of State Antony Blinken departed the Middle East after the United States and Israel quickly closed on the latest hostage deal proposed by Hamas on Thursday. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
A 135-day plan proposed by Hamas called for the gradual release of Israeli hostages in exchange for 1,500 Palestinian prisoners held in Israel, including a list of 1,500 Israeli hostages with life sentences. 500 people will be selected from
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Under the proposal, male hostages over the age of 19 would be released after an initial 45-day phase, at which point Israeli forces would withdraw completely from Gaza.
Despite agreeing to reject the Hamas deal, Mr. Blinken still admonished Israel for the continued loss of civilian lives in the Gaza Strip, while saying that the IDF has taken “significant steps to protect civilians.” “There is,” he pointed out.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called Hamas’s proposal “delusional” and vowed again to continue the war in Gaza until the terrorist organization is completely eradicated. (Gil Cohen Magen/Pool, via AP)
“On every trip so far, and almost every day leading up to it, we have pressed Israel in concrete ways to strengthen protection for civilians and get more aid to those in need. And over the past four months, Israel has taken significant steps to do just that,” Blinken said in a statement. “Nevertheless…the daily toll that military operations continue to inflict on innocent civilians remains too high.”
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Blinken on Wednesday admonished Israel for the continued loss of civilian lives in the Gaza Strip, saying the civilian death toll “remains far too high.” (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
Blinken concluded by noting that Saudi Arabia is open to formalizing ties with Israel as long as the Palestinians are given a clear path to an independent state, something Netanyahu has rejected. .
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“We remain determined to pursue a diplomatic path toward just and lasting peace and security for all in the region, and especially for Israel,” Blinken said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report
