The ceasefire talks come in the context of concern that the Israel-Gaza war may engulf the entire region.

Joe Biden has said he is “optimistic” that a Gaza ceasefire deal can be reached.

“We are closer than we’ve ever been,” the US president said following the latest round of talks, adding he was sending his secretary of state to Israel to continue the “intensive efforts to conclude this agreement”.

Amid concerns that Iran may launch an attack on Israel for the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, Mr Biden said “no-one in the region should take actions to undermine this process”.

Hamas has expressed scepticism about the chances of a deal. And without mentioning the possibility of a ceasefire, Israel said it “appreciates the efforts of the US and the mediators to dissuade Hamas from its refusal to a hostage release deal”.

  • @mlgEnglish
    6•25 days ago

    He better not make a fake treaty without Hamas and champion it as a success.

    There was already a headline last week about how new negotiations included Israel, Egypt, Qatar, and Iran, but did not have anyone representing Hamas.

    It would be really stupid to make a deal without one of the main factions, especially after they already agreed to a treaty, and then act like it’s a done deal.

    • @[email protected]
      2•25 days ago

      Didn’t have anyone representing Hamas or Israel.

      I guess Biden has started to be a bit more careful about how he phrases things now, after the “Israeli” deal he announced a while back, that was immediately rejected by Netenyahu.