Biden, Netanyahu confer as progress cited in Gaza cease-fire, hostage talks
July 4 (UPI) -- President Joe Biden conferred with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Thursday to discuss new developments on a possible hostage and Gaza cease-fire deal with the Palestinian militant group Hamas.
The two leaders touched on ongoing efforts to finalize a potential cease-fire deal linked with the release of hostages as unnamed high-ranking U.S. and Israeli officials told reporters that a breakthrough in the long-stalemated talks appears to have been reached.
There is now "pretty significant opening" for a possible deal, an Israeli source told CNN, while a U.S. source told the Jerusalem Post there has indeed been a breakthrough on what had been a critical sticking point during talks on Biden's proposed deal, which was endorsed last month by the United Nations Security Council.
CNN also reported that Netanyahu had plans for a late night cabinet meeting to discuss the call, during which the White House said the two leaders agreed that U.S. and Israeli national security teams would meet on July 15.
"The framework of the deal is now fully consistent with the President's speech and the U.N. Security Council resolution," the U.S. official told the Post.
The United States has asked Qatar and Egypt to pressure Hamas into accepting the revised deal. Hostage talks are expected to be held in Doha, Qatar's capital, starting as early as Friday and will last for several days, Israeli officials said.
The Biden administration last month proposed new language for parts of the cease-fire and hostage deal between Israel and Hamas after negotiations stalled.
This comes as the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry claimed more than 38,000 Palestinians have died and more than 87,000 injured since Hamas militants attacked Israel on Oct. 7.
During their Thursday conversation, Biden and Netanyahu discussed Hamas' response to the revised proposal, the White House said, emphasizing Biden "welcomed" Netanyahu's decision to authorize Israeli officials to engage with Qatari, Egyptian and U.S. mediators in the effort to close out negotiations.
Biden also "reaffirmed his ironclad commitment to Israel's security" in the face of new and escalating threats from Iranian-backed terrorist groups, such as Hezbollah located primarily in Lebanon.
The U.S. recently deployed an amphibious assault ship to the eastern Mediterranean Sea, intended to act as a military deterrent in a show of force as tensions mount along the border with Lebanon to Israel's north.
The vessel arrived the same day Hezbollah fired at least 200 rockets into northern Israel. One Israeli soldier was reported killed in the Golan Heights in what appeared to be a tit-for-tat escalation following Wednesday's killing of high-ranking Hezbollah leader Muhammad Nimah Nasser during Israeli military airstrikes in the coastal city of Tyre.
