According to President Joe Biden, Israel is prepared to halt military operations in Gaza for the holy month of Ramadan if Hamas releases more of its remaining hostages. Biden believes a cease-fire could come as soon as next week.
However, representatives for Hamas say that the U.S. president made a premature statement and that they need to thoroughly evaluate any truce before an agreement is reached.
The Wall Street Journal reports on the supposedly budding cease-fire and Biden's remarks, which allegedly caught Israeli officials off guard.
Sources from Qatar and Egypt, who are mediating negotiations between Israel and Hamas, have also expressed skepticism at Biden's rosy outlook:
The comments came ahead of the Democratic primary in Michigan, where pro-Palestinian activists and young people have urged voters to select “uncommitted” rather than the president. Biden faces little competition for his party's presidential nomination, but critics want to register disapproval with his pro-Israel stance and demonstrate the strength of the antiwar movement that is riling Democrats.
The U.S., Israel and Arab negotiators view the coming Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which begins on March 10, as a critical deadline to reach a deal to pause the fighting for several weeks and delay a planned Israeli incursion into Rafah, the southernmost city in Gaza where more than one million Palestinans have taken shelter from the war. Ramadan has been a flashpoint for violence in Israel and the Palestinian territories in recent years and many fear that heavy fighting in Gaza could trigger clashes elsewhere.
The framework under discussion would allow for the release of some 40 hostages held by Hamas, more humanitarian aid to flow to starving Palestinians and the freeing of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners held in Israel.
Israel and Hamas remain divided on important details around several parts of the deal, with negotiators working to bridge the gap. The differences could prolong the talks beyond the timeline laid out by Biden, who may be trying to jolt the talks after a rocky few days of negotiations.
Monday night's comments by Biden came two days after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that he hopes to invite Russia to a peace summit this spring. Zelensky's remarks coincided with the second anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion.
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