Secretary of State Antony Blinken met Monday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who announced support for Blinken's "bridging proposal" aimed at creating a cease-fire tied to the release of Hamas-held hostages and Israeli-held militants.
Netanyahu's office issued a statement saying the prime minister was committed to "the current American proposal on the release of our hostages, which takes into account Israel's security needs." Blinken, speaking to reporters in Tel Aviv, said negotations were at a "decisive moment" and urged Hamas to accept the proposal.
"The next important step is for Hamas to say yes," Blinken said. "And then, in the coming days, for all of the expert negotiators to get together to work on clear understandings on implementing the agreement."
The meeting, however, came hours after Hamas dismissed the plan as little more than a reflection of Netanyahu's demands. Months of sporadic talks have hit roadblocks over Israel demanding Hamas be destroyed as a military and political force and Hamas demanding a permanent cease-fire rather than a temporary one.
Another major issue is Netanyahu’s demand, rejected by Hamas, that the Israeli military remain deployed along the Gaza-Egypt border to prevent Hamas from smuggling weapons into Gaza. The deployment was not part of Israel's May proposal that has been the baseline for negotiations since.
Blinken was undeterred by the apparent obstacles that remain.
"These are still complex issues, and they’re going to require hard decisions by the leaders," he said. "There is, I think, a real sense of urgency here, across the region, on the need to get this over the finish line and to do it as soon as possible."
Developments:
∎ The Scottish government said Monday it won't normalize relations with Israel until its government provides unimpeded access to humanitarian aid in Gaza and "cooperates fully with its international obligations on the investigation of genocide and war crimes."
∎ The main U.N. agency in Gaza, UNRWA, said 207 of its staff had been killed since the war began. "They were engineers, teachers, medical staff. They were humanitarian workers," UNRWA said in a statement.
∎ Israeli airstrikes in Nuseirat camp and in Khan Younis in southern and central Gaza Strip killed at least six Palestinians and wounded 15, the Palestinian Civil Defense in Gaza said.
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Families of hostages press for deal
Blinken met with families of Israeli hostages, who have been putting extensive pressure on Netanyahu to cut a deal. Ayelet Levy-Shachar, whose 20-year-old daughter, Naama, is among those held, pleaded on Isreali Kan Radio for the government not to "sacrifice my daughter and the dozens of helpless hostages."
Inside Gaza, some Palestinians expressed little optimism that Blinken's visit would bring a cease-fire.
"They are lying just to destroy us more and more," said Hanan Abu Hamid, who was displaced from her home in Rafah. "Kill us and kill our children, starve us and make us homeless. Blinken is useless, his visit will harm the Palestinian people."
Israeli officer killed in friendly fire missile strike
An Israeli officer was killed and six soldiers wounded by an errant missile during an Israeli airstrike Monday, the military said. Shahar Ben Nun, 21, who led a paratroopers brigade’s reconnaissance unit, was promoted from the rank of sergeant to lieutenant after his death. Nun was from Petah Tikva, a city of almost 250,000 a few miles outside of Tel Aviv.
Three soldiers were moderately wounded and three others were described as "lightly" wounded, the military said. The statement said Air Force F-15 fighter jets were striking several targets in the Khan Younis area when one of the missiles failed to glide to the intended target, instead striking a multi-story building where the paratroopers were stationed.
Hamas says it was behind Tel Aviv explosion
Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, claimed responsiblity Monday for a suicide bombing Sunday in Tel Aviv that killed the bomber and wounded an Israeli passerby. The Brigades issues a statement saying "martyrdom operations ... will return to the forefront as long as the occupation massacres" civilians and continues its policy of assassinating Hamas leaders. The statement said the bombing was an joint operation with another militant group, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad. Israeli police said the bomber was walking down a street when his backpack exploded. The Israeli security agency Shin Bet said it was working to confirm the identity of the bomber, a man in his 50s. Some Israeli media outlets reported that he was believed to be a Palestinian from the West Bank.
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