WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The Biden administration will not allow “extremists,” including in Israel, to push Gaza ceasefire talks off course, White House national security spokesperson John Kirby said on Friday and accused Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich of making false claims.
Kirby said that Smotrich’s claims that a ceasefire deal would be a surrender to Hamas or that hostages should not be exchanged for prisoners are “dead wrong,” and said the minister was misleading the Israeli public.
The United States and its allies have been trying to arrange a ceasefire-for-hostages deal for months but have consistently run into obstacles from both Israel and Hamas.
U.S. officials believed the latest proposal is the closest the parties have been to an agreement to free women, sick and elderly hostages held by Hamas in Gaza since Oct. 7 in exchange for at least six weeks of ceasefire.
“We want to get a deal. We believe that it’s possible to do that … But it’s going to require some leadership on all sides here and some compromises,” Kirby told reporters.
Leaders of the United States, Egypt and Qatar on Thursday called on Israel and Hamas to meet for negotiations on Aug. 15 to finalize a Gaza ceasefire and hostage-release deal.
The three countries, which have been trying to mediate a deal, said in a joint statement the talks could take place next week in either Doha or Cairo.
Kirby said some critics like Smotrich have claimed that the hostage deal is “a surrender to Hamas or that hostages should not be exchanged for (Palestinian) prisoners” and that the war should go on indefinitely.
“His arguments are dead wrong,” said Kirby.
(Reporting by Steve Holland, Rami Ayyub and Ismail Shakil; Editing by Rod Nickel)
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