According to the sources, administration officials told the families they are exploring all options but emphasized that a deal involving Israel remains the most viable approach.
NBC News reported on Thursday that US President Joe Biden’s administration is considering a request from the families of American detainees in Gaza to negotiate an agreement with the Palestinian Resistance Movement Hamas that would not involve Israel.
“In a meeting Sunday with national security adviser Jake Sullivan (…) the relatives of US citizens still in captivity urged the administration to evaluate options that do not include Israel,” NBC reported, citing informed sources.
There are reportedly four American captives still held by Hamas in Gaza that “the US believes are alive, and the administration is seeking the return of the remains of three others who are believed to be dead,” the report noted.
According to the sources, administration officials told the families they are exploring all options but emphasized that a deal involving Israel remains the most viable approach.
‘Working to Stop Negotiations with Hamas’ – Ben-Gvir Demands End to Ceasefire Talks
The report also mentioned that US officials initiated contact with Hamas around six months ago, mediated by Qatar, to explore the possibility of an agreement without Israel.
However, the report noted that “the idea did not advance, with some top administration officials strongly opposing it, and President Joe Biden opting to continue to try to reach a broader deal that includes Israel”.
A US official noted that reaching a one-sided agreement with Hamas is unlikely, as Washington lacks sufficient leverage to secure the release of captives.
“We have considered all possible options,” an official is reported as saying, adding that “because of Hamas’ demands, there has not been a formal offer for a side deal made because no such deal is possible”.
“Hamas wants two things that only Israel can deliver: a cease-fire and nearly 1,000 Palestinian prisoners currently in Israeli jails. Every other proposal has gone nowhere,” the official reportedly added.
Recent reports suggest that Washington is preparing a “last chance” proposal for a deal between Israel and Hamas.
‘Last Chance’
On Wednesday, the Israeli newspaper Maariv reported that one of the possible scenarios in the final proposal for a prisoner exchange deal, which the US may present, could require both Israel and Hamas to agree to all parts of the deal simultaneously.
According to the paper’s political commentator Anna Brasky, Israeli political sources revealed that the American plan would eliminate phased negotiations, instead asking for a complete agreement.
This would include ending the fighting, withdrawing the Israeli army from Gaza, transferring control of the Philadelphi Corridor to an international force, and providing assurances that Hamas leaders, including Yahya Sinwar, would not be targeted.
The report noted a growing pessimism about the deal’s prospects, particularly after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that “his insistence on remaining in the Philadelphia axis is a vital strategic need for the security of the country”.
According to sources cited in the report, if Israel turns down the deal, US diplomacy may shift to more punitive measures. For example, they may “not veto proposals against Israel in the Security Council, and will deepen its political isolation.”
Ongoing Genocide
Flouting a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire, Israel has faced international condemnation amid its continued brutal offensive on Gaza.
Currently on trial before the International Court of Justice for genocide against Palestinians, Israel has been waging a devastating war on Gaza since October 7.
According to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, 40,861 Palestinians have been killed, and 94,398 wounded in Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza starting on October 7.
Moreover, at least 11,000 people are unaccounted for, presumed dead under the rubble of their homes throughout the Strip.
Israel says that 1,200 soldiers and civilians were killed during the Al-Aqsa Flood Operation on October 7. Israeli media published reports suggesting that many Israelis were killed on that day by ‘friendly fire’.
Palestinian and international organizations say that the majority of those killed and wounded are women and children.
The Israeli war has resulted in an acute famine, mostly in northern Gaza, resulting in the death of many Palestinians, mostly children.
The Israeli aggression has also resulted in the forceful displacement of nearly two million people from all over the Gaza Strip, with the vast majority of the displaced forced into the densely crowded southern city of Rafah near the border with Egypt – in what has become Palestine’s largest mass exodus since the 1948 Nakba.
Later in the war, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians began moving from the south to central Gaza in a constant search for safety.
(PC, AJA)
Bullsh!t. this is pre-election foreplay, before the money shot in November.