Hostage killings by Hamas and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s increasingly hardline public stance have hampered the U.S. push for a cease-fire in Gaza, a senior Biden administration official said.
“Ninety percent of this deal has been agreed,” but two main issues remain, the official said: the identity of Palestinian prisoners who will be released in exchange for those still held in Gaza, and the “redeployment” of Israeli forces in the enclave, Netanyahu said, no deal will be done unless they can stay in the area, known as the Philadelphia Corridor.
The Israeli leader’s frequent public interventions have also made things “more difficult,” the official said.
Providing perhaps the most detailed insight yet into the talks, the senior official told reporters at a crucial moment – as Netanyahu stuck to his demand despite diplomatic pressure and angry domestic protests.
For months, the United States has been leading talks with Qatar and Egypt in hopes of reaching an agreement that would end Israel’s nearly year-long offensive in Gaza and secure the release of hostages held in the enclave following the October 7 terrorist attacks by Hamas.
So far, the U.S. has released limited details about the talks, but the official said that after the hostage killings and with Netanyahu’s public comments drawing widespread backlash, the Biden administration felt compelled to shine a light on “what’s really on the table.”
Read more: What is the Philadelphia Corridor?
The briefing came as NBC News revealed that families of American hostages held by Hamas have pressed the White House to seriously consider striking a unilateral deal with the militant group to secure the release of their loved ones.
The deal under negotiation does not specifically mention the Philadelphi Corridor, a narrow strip of land on the Gaza side of the enclave’s border with Egypt, the official told reporters.
Netanyahu has insisted in several news conferences this week that Israel must maintain a military presence in the corridor to prevent Hamas from using the border area, including to smuggle weapons into Gaza.
A US official suggested there were complexities in Netanyahu’s public comments, saying that “putting concrete views in the middle of a negotiation is not always particularly helpful”.
In a fresh light on the impact of the debate over the Philadelphi Corridor on the talks, a US official said the first phase of the truce under the future deal would include the withdrawal of Israeli forces from all “densely populated areas” in Gaza. But the official said a dispute had arisen over whether the corridor fell into that category.
The official said that over the past two weeks, Israeli negotiators had made a proposal that would “significantly reduce” their presence in the corridor and that this would be in line with the agreement. But a senior official said: “Until you have a deal, you don’t have a deal.”
And the official said the Philadelphi Corridor was not the only sticking point, with the exchange of Palestinian prisoners for hostages also a point of contention that has been further complicated by last weekend’s news.
The killings brought fresh pain to the families of the hostages, who had been clinging to hope that their loved ones would be freed under a ceasefire deal, and fueled widespread protests in Israel calling for Netanyahu to agree to the deal. But they also meant that there were now “fewer hostages as part of the deal,” meaning fewer Palestinian prisoners would also be released in return, the official said.
“It’s tragic and terrible, and you know, it affects all of us,” the US official said. But the official said, “Until you have a deal, the hostages won’t come home, and the war won’t end.”
The killings “color the discussions and have brought a sense of urgency to the process, but it has also called into question Hamas’s readiness to make any kind of deal,” the official added.
Israel’s foreign minister suggested the same on Thursday. “Anyone who murders six hostages in cold blood is not looking for a deal,” Israel Katz said. Right-wing National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said earlier this week that he was “working to end negotiations with Hamas” after the hostage killings.
Hamas accused Netanyahu of “holding up” the talks. In a Telegram message early Thursday, the militant group said the Israeli leader’s demand to keep troops in the Philadelphia corridor was an attempt to prolong the standoff.
According to local health officials, more than 40,000 people have died in the Gaza Strip since Israel launched its military offensive in the enclave following a Hamas attack that killed about 1,200 people and took about 250 hostage, according to Israeli officials. .
About 100 people are still believed to be held hostage in Gaza, and about a third of them are believed to be dead, according to Israeli officials.
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
