US and UK Urge Hamas to Accept Generous Israeli Truce Proposal and Release Hostages
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken urged Hamas to quickly accept Israel's proposal for a ceasefire in the Gaza war and release Israeli hostages.
Hamas negotiators were meeting with Qatari and Egyptian mediators in Cairo to respond to Israel's phased truce proposal.
Blinken described the Israeli proposal as "extraordinarily generous," and the only obstacle to a ceasefire being Hamas.
The source briefed on the talks mentioned that Israel's proposal included the release of fewer than 40 of the approximately 130 hostages held in Gaza in exchange for freeing Palestinians imprisoned in Israel.
A truce between Israel and Hamas may enter a second phase with a "period of sustained calm," following Israel's compromise response to Hamas' demand for a permanent ceasefire.
In an attack on Oct. 7, Hamas seized 253 hostages and killed approximately 1,200 Israelis, according to Israeli counts.
Israel retaliated with a siege and military offensive, resulting in the deaths of about 34,500 Palestinians and a humanitarian crisis due to severe shortages of food, fuel, and medicine.
British Foreign Secretary David Cameron described Israel's proposal as "generous." A 40-day ceasefire was proposed in the Gaza conflict, and over thousands of Palestinian prisoners and Israeli hostages were to be released, British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond shared with the World Economic Forum.
He urged Hamas to accept the deal, with international pressure being applied.
Hammond was among several foreign ministers in Riyadh, including from the US, France, Jordan, and Egypt, working to end the Gaza war through diplomatic means.