WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden on Friday outlined a three-phase deal proposed by Israel to Hamas militants that he said would lead to the release of the remaining hostages in Gaza and could end the crushing nearly eight-month war in the Middle East. .
Biden added that Hamas is “no longer capable” of carrying out another large-scale attack on Israel as he urged Israelis and Hamas to reach an agreement to release the remaining hostages for an extended ceasefire -the-fire.
The Democratic president, in remarks from the White House, called the proposal “a roadmap to a lasting ceasefire and the release of all hostages.”
Biden said the first phase of the proposed deal would last six weeks and include a “full and complete ceasefire,” a withdrawal of Israeli troops from all populated areas of Gaza and the release of a number of hostages, including women . , the elderly and the injured, in exchange for the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners.
American hostages would be released at this stage and the remains of dead hostages would be returned to their families. Humanitarian aid would increase dramatically during the first phase, with 600 trucks allowed into Gaza daily.
The second phase would include the release of all remaining living hostages, including male soldiers, and Israeli forces would withdraw from Gaza.
“And as long as Hamas meets its commitments, the temporary ceasefire would become, in the words of the Israeli proposals, ‘the permanent cessation of hostilities,’” Biden said.
The third phase calls for the start of a large-scale reconstruction of Gaza, which faces decades of rebuilding after the devastation caused by the war.
But Biden acknowledged it would be difficult to keep the deal on track, saying some “details need to be negotiated” to move from the first phase to the second.
Biden’s comments came as the Israeli military confirmed that its forces are now operating in central parts of Rafah amid their expanding offensive in the southern Gaza city. Biden called it “truly a defining moment.” He added that Hamas said it wants a ceasefire and that a phased deal in Israel is a chance to prove “whether they really mean it.”
Israel has come under increasing international criticism for its strategy of systematic destruction in Gaza, with enormous consequences for civilian casualties. Israeli bombings and ground offensives in the besieged area have killed more than 36,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s health ministry, which makes no distinction between fighters and civilians.
Israel began its war in Gaza after Hamas’s attack on October 7, in which militants stormed into southern Israel, killing about 1,200 people – mostly civilians – and kidnapping about 250. Israel says about 100 hostages are still trapped in Gaza, along with the bodies of about 30 more.
Ceasefire talks halted early this month after a major push by the US and other mediators to reach an agreement, hoping to avert a planned Israeli invasion of the southern city of Rafah. The talks have been hampered by a central sticking point: Hamas is demanding guarantees that the war will end and that Israeli forces will withdraw completely from Gaza in exchange for the release of all hostages, a demand that Israel rejects.
