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- An Israel-Hamas cease-fire and hostage deal is looking increasingly likely.
- US, Israeli, and Palestinian officials have expressed optimism that an agreement would be reached.
- White House officials say it could come before President Joe Biden leaves office on January 20.
An Israel-Hamas cease-fire and hostage deal is looking increasingly likely in the final days of President Joe Biden’s administration, with officials from all sides expressing optimism that an agreement could soon be reached, potentially in the coming days.
The devasting conflict has been raging for 15 months, after Hamas-led militants launched a surprise terror attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, killing about 1,200 people and taking 251 people hostage.
Hamas and its allies still hold 94 of the hostages, including the remains of at least 34 who have died, according to Israel’s government.
Meanwhile, Israel’s military offensive in Gaza, which has left large parts of the Strip in ruin, has killed more than 46,000 people, according to Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry.
However, there’s growing hope that the violence may soon come to an end, and that some hostages may be freed.
On Monday, Biden said cease-fire talks are “on the brink” of coming into fruition.
In the past, officials have expressed optimism about the prospect of a deal, only for negotiations to flounder.
“I have learned in many years of public service to never, never, never, ever give up,” Biden said, adding that the US is “pressing hard” to close the deal.
During the speech in Washington, DC, Biden told reporters that the proposed deal would free the hostages, halt the fighting, provide security to Israel, and allow for the increase of humanitarian aid to Palestinians in Gaza.
On Monday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told MSNBC that a deal is “closer than we’ve ever been.”
White House national security advisor Jake Sullivan also offered glimmers of home on Monday, saying in an interview with Nexstar Washington that “we are so close to a cease-fire and hostage deal.”
Sullivan called it a “distinct possibility” that the US would be able to get it across the line this week, “before President Biden leaves office.”
President-elect Donald Trump will be inaugurated on January 20, 2025.
On Monday, Trump told Newsmax that he understands “there’s been a handshake and they’re getting it finished and maybe by the end of the week.”
Basem Naim, a senior Hamas official, told The Washington Post on Monday that “significant progress” had been made in negotiations and that the mediators had a final draft agreement.
“We are so close,” he told the outlet.
Qadura Fares, who leads the Palestinian Ministry of Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs, also suggested there was some movement in negotiations.
He told CNN on Monday that he was traveling to Qatar to advise negotiators on the list of hostages to be freed “in the event the deal materializes.”
There’s also optimism in Israel, with several local media outlets reporting that a deal was nearing completion.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said during a news conference on Monday that Israel had been working with both the outgoing Biden administration and incoming Trump administration to hopefully secure a deal “within a short time.”
He said, “There is progress, I said it looks much better than previously.”
Meanwhile, a group representing the families of the hostages said in a news release that representatives will meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday.
“The families are hopeful that any deal, even a limited one, represents an important first step toward a comprehensive agreement,” the Hostages and Missing Families Forum said.
It added, “They are grateful for every hostage who returns home and see each release as progress toward their ultimate goal: the return of all hostages — the living for rehabilitation and the deceased for proper burial.”
