US President Joe Biden on Friday urged the leaders of Egypt and Qatar to pressure Hamas to agree to a Gaza ceasefire and hostage deal ahead of a fresh round of talks this weekend in Cairo.
CIA Director Bill Burns will lead the US delegation to the Cairo talks, a US official said.
A senior Biden administration official said Joe Biden wrote letters to Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and the emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, on the state of the hostage talks and “he urged them to secure commitments from Hamas to agree and abide by a deal.”
Biden spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday during which they discussed ongoing hostage negotiations and the round of talks in Cairo.
White House national security spokesperson John Kirby said Joe Biden told Netanyahu to empower his negotiators in Cairo so that a deal can be reached as soon as possible.
The United States and its allies view a ceasefire as essential to allowing more humanitarian aid to get into Gaza amid fears of famine among the Palestinians there.
Under the most recent proposal, Israel and Hamas would agree to a six-week ceasefire in exchange for the release of sick, elderly and wounded hostages held by Hamas. Progress on a deal has been stalled for weeks.
“This basic fact remains true: There would be a ceasefire in Gaza today had Hamas simply agreed to release this vulnerable category of hostages – the sick, wounded, elderly, and young women,” the senior Biden official said.
“The onus is on Hamas to release the hostages and bring relief to the people of Gaza through a prolonged ceasefire,” the official said.
White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan will meet the families of the hostages at the White House on Monday, the official said.
