Biden Blames Hamas for Blocking Ceasefire Agreement in Gaza

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The U.S. President accuses the Palestinian group of retracting from the proposed plan amid escalating field operations by Israel.

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On Tuesday, U.S. President Joe Biden announced that Hamas is “retracting” from the proposed agreement with Israel for a ceasefire in Gaza, in what he described as a direct and explicit accusation against the movement for rejecting the ceasefire plan. Hamas leadership, on the other hand, emphasized that Washington is yielding to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

In response to journalists’ questions at Chicago Airport after delivering a speech at the Democratic National Convention, Biden stated that the proposed settlement “is still on the table, but nothing can be predicted,” adding, “Israel says it can come to a conclusion… Hamas is retracting now.”

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Hamas claimed that the Israeli government is placing obstacles to reaching a ceasefire agreement in Gaza, including an exchange of prisoners, following the latest round of negotiations in Doha, stressing that the “new ceasefire proposal for Gaza, presented by the U.S. during the Doha talks, responds to Netanyahu‘s rejection of a permanent ceasefire and a full withdrawal from the Gaza Strip.”

Netanyahu has called for increased international pressure on Hamas to accept a ceasefire and immediately release the hostages.

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U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is discussing in Alamein, northern Egypt, with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi and Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry about achieving a ceasefire in Gaza.

Blinken arrived in Egypt from Tel Aviv as part of his ninth tour of the region since the start of the war in Gaza on October 7, while Cairo emphasizes the need for Israeli withdrawal from the Philadelphi Corridor and the Rafah crossing.

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Simultaneously, White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre stated that senior officials would meet in Cairo “before the end of the week” to finalize a ceasefire agreement in Gaza.

During the daily briefing on Monday, the spokesperson mentioned that “senior officials” would meet in Cairo “before the end of the week” to reach a ceasefire agreement in Gaza, noting that the potential agreement would provide substantial relief to Palestinians in Gaza and that humanitarian aid would reach the strip.

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She added, “It is time to finalize this agreement, and what is currently on the table aims to ensure that,” emphasizing that the White House has worked hard to reach this agreement and that President Joe Biden is “engaged” in discussions with regional leaders.

On the ground, the Israeli army announced Tuesday morning that it had found the bodies of six hostages in Gaza during an operation carried out in conjunction with domestic intelligence.

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The army clarified that these were the bodies of five hostages previously declared dead in recent months: Alex Danzig, Shaiem Perry, Yagiv Boustap, Yoram Metzger, and Nadav Poployl, as well as the body of Avraham Munder, whose kibbutz Nir Oz announced his death on Tuesday.

A former hostage confirmed that the six hostages had been held together in a tunnel after being captured by Hamas during its attack on Israel on October 7.

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According to the army, the families of the deceased hostages were notified after analyzing intelligence information and forensic reports, without providing further details on the operation carried out in Khan Younis in southern Gaza.

The Hostage and Missing Families Forum stated in a statement that the recovery of the bodies “provides the families with necessary reassurance and gives the deceased eternal rest,” calling on the Israeli government to ensure the return of the remaining hostages to Israel in a deal currently under negotiation.

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It added, “The Israeli government, with the help of mediators, must do everything in its power to finalize the agreement currently on the table.”

Mediators, represented by the U.S., Egypt, and Qatar, are urging both Israel and Hamas to reach a ceasefire agreement that would facilitate the release of remaining hostages in exchange for the release of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.

Earlier on Tuesday, Kibbutz Nir Oz announced the death of hostage Avraham Munder (79), who was held in Gaza.

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The statement read: “Kibbutz Nir Oz announces with great sadness that Avraham Munder, aged 79, was killed in captivity in Gaza after months of physical and psychological torture.”

Munder, his wife, daughter, and grandson were captured during the attack on October 7.

The wife, daughter, and granddaughter were released during the truce between the two sides in November, which lasted for a week.

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The war in the Gaza Strip erupted following Hamas‘s attack, which resulted in 1,199 deaths, mostly civilians, according to an Agence France-Presse tally based on official Israeli figures.

251 people were abducted during the attack, with 105 still held in Gaza, while the army reports that 34 of them have died.

Israeli airstrikes, shelling, and ground operations in response to the attack in Gaza have resulted in at least 40,173 deaths, according to the Hamas Health Ministry, which does not differentiate between fighters and civilians. The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights reports that the majority of the victims are women and children.