American officials said that the U.S. is discussing a final framework for a hostage deal and a cease-fire in Gaza with Egypt and Qatar.
An official told the Washington Post on Sunday that U.S. President Joe Biden's administration considers this a "take it or leave it" deal as part of Biden's efforts to expedite negotiations following the deaths of six hostages whose bodies were located, recovered and returned to Israel from the Gaza Strip by the IDF on Saturday.
According to a senior Biden administration official, the Americans plan to present the framework to Israel and Hamas in the coming weeks. If both sides don't accept it, this could lead to the end of U.S.-led negotiations for a deal.
He said that the U.S., along with the other mediators, Egypt and Qatar, began working on the proposal even before the hostages' bodies were discovered. Other officials said it was still unclear how the deaths of the six might affect the chances of reaching a deal in the coming weeks.
"You can’t keep negotiating this. This process has to be called at some point," the senior official said. "Does it [the hostages' murders] derail the deal? No. If anything, it should add additional urgency in this closing phase, which we were already in.”
The White House announced on Monday that Biden and U.S. Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris will meet with the negotiation team in the White House Situation Room to discuss "efforts to promote an agreement that guarantees the release of the remaining hostages."
Meanwhile, the families of hostages with U.S. citizenship were invited to an online meeting with White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and Biden's Middle East envoy Brett McGurk on Sunday.
According to the families, Sullivan told them the coming days are "critical for the release of the hostages," including the seven Americans still held captive by Hamas.
"The White House is heartbroken by this senseless and brutal act by Hamas," Sullivan said, reiterating Biden's commitment to working around the clock to secure a deal that will lead to the hostages' release.
Ronen Neutra, the father of Israeli-American hostage Omer Neutra, told Ynet that Sullivan and McGurk clarified to the families that Israel has responded to its proposal and that the U.S. is now waiting for Hamas' answer, believing the gaps between the sides can be bridged.
"We hope their pressure on the parties, including Hamas, Qatar, Egypt and Israel, will finally yield the desired outcome," he said.