Editor-DN
The US says that the Gaza peace plan was prepared by Israel, not by Washington.
Washington:
A senior White House official said Monday that Israel has agreed to a cease-fire and hostage-release deal brokered by US President Joe Biden, and it is up to Hamas to make a move.
National Security Adviser Jack Sullivan’s comments came amid growing skepticism over the plan, which Biden described as an Israeli initiative but drew a mixed response from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government.
“We saw a renewed willingness on the part of Israel over the weekend to move forward and make a deal,” Sullivan told the Global Impact Forum in Washington.
“All those who have been calling for a ceasefire all this time need to look at Hamas this week and say, ‘It’s time to come to the table, get this deal.’
Sullivan, who has made several trips to the Middle East since the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks on Israel, said a deal would be “the best thing” for the people of Gaza, Israel and the United States.
State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said the proposal was “virtually identical” to one put forward by Hamas several weeks ago and asked the militant group’s leader, Yahya Sinwar, to “not move the goalposts.” Do it.”
Miller said, “If Snwar decides he’s safe in a tunnel, and the proposal isn’t in his best interest because he feels safe, that’s a guess he can make. But I I think it’s very clearly in the interest of the Palestinian people.” Reporters
Biden on Friday presented what he labeled an Israeli three-phase plan that would end the conflict, free all hostages and rebuild the devastated Palestinian territory without Hamas taking power.
However, Netanyahu’s office quickly emphasized that Israel would continue the war until all of its targets, including Hamas, were eliminated as a military and political force.
Asked about the Israeli holdout on the deal, Miller said that “endless conflict in pursuit of some semblance of total victory in Gaza is not going to make Israel safe.”
He said the eight-month war had reduced Hamas “incredibly”, with scores of its fighters killed, and weapons and underground weapons factories destroyed.
“We don’t believe that anyone could have carried out an attack like he did on Oct. 7,” Miller said.
Hamas said on Friday it viewed Biden’s sketch “positively” but has since made no official comment.
The White House insisted on Monday that the peace plan is Israel’s own, and was not drafted by Washington to pressure its key ally.
“This is an Israeli proposal. This is a proposal that we and they worked through through some intensive diplomacy,” National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters.
Biden had informed Israel in advance that he would make the announcement.
“The president felt it was important to put it out there publicly so the whole world could see what was here,” Kirby added.
(Other than the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
