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- August 19, 2024
- 10:33 pm
- Middle East
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Israel had accepted an offer to bridge differences over a ceasefire and the release of hostages in Gaza.
He also called on Hamas, which the US and EU have designated as a terrorist organisation, to do the same.
Blinken spoke on August 19 after a 2.5-hour meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
He did not specify whether the so-called “compromise proposal” addressed concerns raised by militants or Israeli demands for control of two strategic corridors in Gaza that Hamas says cannot be met.
Netanyahu, in turn, called the meeting with Blinken “good and important.” In his video address, he emphasized that he was trying to “free the maximum number of living hostages – this is already at the first stage of the deal.”
On August 16, the Gaza talks were postponed until next week. According to a joint statement, mediators from Egypt, Qatar and the United States, along with Israel and Hamas, had not reached a breakthrough, but the statement released said the two days of talks in the Qatari capital, Doha, had been constructive.
It is indicated that Washington has presented a new proposal that builds on the points of previous agreements, eliminating differences between the parties in a way that will ensure the rapid implementation of the deal.
Israel and Hamas have been negotiating an internationally backed ceasefire proposal for more than two months. During that time, indirect talks have made little substantive progress and differences remain.
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🌍 This article is also available in UK