The cease-fire and hostage release negotiations are on the verge of collapse, according to a report in Politico on Wednesday, quoting U.S. and Israeli officials.
"We don't know if Sinwar wants this deal," one source told the outlet, "but if we don't get the deal, there's a chance that Iran attacks and this escalates into a full-blown confrontation."|
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Joe Biden, Yahya Sinwar, Benjamin Netnanyahu
(Photo:Evelyn Hockstein/ Reuters, IDF, Haim Goldberg / Flash 90)
The sources said the current proposal is the strongest form of the deal to date "because it includes terms that are tailored to the demands of both Hamas and Israel. Israel has signed on, but Hamas says in public statements it will not accept the pact."
Politico wrote that the official's assessment was much more dire than was being presented publicly by the Biden administration after U.S. Secretary Antony Blinken completed his Mid-east tour on Tuesday.
Negotiations are set to resume in Cairo in the coming days and while the White House hopes to resume its summit there by the end of the week, that may not happen.
Cairo has also been standing firm on its rejection of an Israeli presence along the Philadelphi Corridor which runs along the Gaza-Egypt border.
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U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken with Egyptian President Abd el-Fattah el-Sisi
(Photo: AFP )
Meanwhile, another Israeli source said the summit will go
ahead as planned although Hamas has not shown any willingness to reach a deal. The source said Hamas only showed flexibility in negotiations when Israel stood firm on its demands.
According to a report in the Qatari Al-Arabi Al Jadeed newspaper, Jibril Rajoub, secretary general of the Fatah movement will meet with Egyptian officials on the administration of the Rafah border crossing.