There is once again talk of a "breakthrough" in efforts to achieve a Gaza ceasefire and prisoner swap between Israel and Hamas, Reuters and other publications are reporting Monday. President Biden is also touting this in his last foreign policy speech:
A Gaza deal is "on the brink", President Joe Biden has said in his final foreign policy address. The outgoing US president said it would include a hostage release deal and a "surge" of aid to Palestinians.
"In the war between Israel and Hamas, we're on the brink of a proposal that I laid out in detail months ago finally coming to fruition," Biden said while visiting the State Department for the final time as president.
What's new about this current round of negotiations is that Trump's envoy for the conflict, Steve Witkoff, is present, along with the Biden administration's outgoing envoy Brett McGurk. A draft deal has reportedly been presented to all sides, and mediators are awaiting Hamas' response. "The next 24 hours will be pivotal to reaching the deal," an official told Reuters. And separately, the Israeli side has said: "The hostage deal outline is clear, and Israel has come a long, long way."
"We are moving forward slowly and carefully. We hope that Hamas will stop with its refusals," the official added. According to further details:
Mediators gave Israel and Hamas a final draft of a deal on Monday to end the war in Gaza, an official briefed on the negotiations said, after a midnight "breakthrough" in talks attended by envoys of both Joe Biden and Donald Trump.
The official said the text for a ceasefire and release of hostages was presented by Qatar to both sides at talks in Doha, which included the chiefs of Israel's Mossad and Shin Bet spy agencies and Qatar's prime minister.
The proposed three-stage deal comes as the Biden administration desperately hopes to mediate peace with merely a week to go before Trump is inaugurated on Jan.20. What has stalled things in the past is Hamas' demand that Israel's military leave the Gaza Strip, something which PM Netanyahu has considered a non-starter.
For much of the last year Secretary of State Antony Blinken has claimed to be at the 'goal line' of achieving a deal, but talks have consistently collapsed despite these overly optimistic assessments.
Still, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar is now claiming that greater progress has been made due to the coordination between Biden's and Trump's teams.
"There is progress, it looks much better than previously. I want to thank our American friends for the huge efforts they are investing to secure a hostage deal," Saar told a press briefing. Biden's White House officials have said a deal is being pressed hard ahead of Trump taking office:
The Biden administration sees a possible Gaza agreement as soon as this week, White House national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, told Bloomberg News earlier today. Despite expressing optimism, he stressed there were no guarantees that Israel and Hamas would agree to such a deal that could pause the 15-month-old war on the devastated territory. The US is pressing for a deal before Donald Trump takes office on 20 January.
Is there legitimate progress this time due to the Trump factor?
Starting early last month the president-elect betwen threatening escalation if Hamas and Palestinian militants in Gaza don't immediately free the remaining Israeli hostages. "Everybody is talking about the hostages who are being held so violently, inhumanely, and against the will of the entire World, in the Middle East - But it’s all talk, and no action!" Trump had stated on his Truth Social.
He warmed that there will be "hell to pay" if Hamas doesn't release the captives. "Please let this TRUTH serve to represent that if the hostages are not released prior to January 20, 2025, the date that I proudly assume Office as President of the United States, there will be ALL HELL TO PAY in the Middle East, and for those in charge who perpetrated these atrocities against Humanity," Trump continued in the statement.
In Lebanon the 60-day agreed upon ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah has largely held. This may provide momentum for regional diplomats to finally secure a path forward in Gaza. There's officially some 100 Israeli captives still unaccounted for; however, Israeli and US intelligence believe many are deceased.