Gaza ceasefire deal unlikely before end of Joe Biden's tenure: Report
US officials said the ceasefire deal was not 'imminent' and the pager and walkie-talkies explosions targeting strongholds of Hezbollah had complicated negotiations.
by Ashutosh Acharya · India TodayIn Short
- Israeli attack on Hezbollah further complicates negotiations
- US officials say ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas not 'imminent'
- Eleven-month war in Gaza has killed over 41,000 Palestinians
A ceasefire deal between Israel and militant outfit Hamas in Gaza is unlikely before the end of US President Joe Biden's term in January, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported. The 11-month war in Gaza has already killed over 41,000 Palestinians and displaced over 100,000.
US officials said no deal was "imminent". "I am not sure if it will ever get done," an official was quoted as saying by WSJ.
The remark came even as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken recently said that 90 per cent of the ceasefire deal had been agreed upon. "I can tell you that we do not believe that deal is falling apart," Pentagon spokesperson Sabrina Singh was quoted as saying by news agency Reuters on Thursday.
However, the US officials quoted by WSJ cited two main reasons for the ceasefire deal not going through anytime soon.
Firstly, the ratio of Palestinian prisoners that Israel should release in exchange for Hamas-held hostages. The second sticking point has been Hamas making demands and then refusing to sign the final outcome despite the US and Israel accepting them.
Several critics have also accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of sabotaging the negotiations, trying to appease the right-wing coalition parties in the country.
The pager and walkie-talkies explosions targeting strongholds of Lebanese terror group Hezbollah, an ally of Hamas, has further complicated the negotiations. While Israel has not commented on the unprecedented incident, a case of supply chain attacks, Lebanon has blamed the Benjamin Netanyahu-led government for the incident that has left over 30 dead.
"There's no chance now of it (ceasefire deal) happening," an official from an Arab country was quoted as saying by the WSJ, after Israel attacked Hezbollah. He further said that everyone was in a "wait-and-see mode" until after the elections.
"The outcome will determine what can happen in the next administration," he was quoted as saying.