Antony Blinken arrives in Israel to push for hostage deal
Tel Aviv [Israel]: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Tel Aviv on Sunday to push for a hostage deal between Israel and Hamas, The Times of Israel reported.
It is Blinken's ninth visit to Tel Aviv since the war between Israel and Hamas started in October. During his visit, Blinken is set to meet Israeli leaders, including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, as the White House indicates that a deal is ready to be closed.
Mid-level Israeli negotiators held talks in Cairo on Sunday after holding discussions for two days in Qatar, sparking optimism among the mediating nations. Working groups continue to stay in Doha.
Shortly before Blinken arrived in Israel, Netanyahu said that he was sticking to his demands, calling for more pressure on an inflexible Hamas, potentially trying to lower expectations as Washington has expressed optimism, according to The Times of Israel report.
"I want to emphasize," Netanyahu said at the weekly cabinet meeting, "we are conducting negotiations ["give-and-take" in Hebrew], and not give-and-give. There are areas where we can show flexibility, and there are areas where we can't show flexibility -- and we are standing firm on them. We know quite well how to distinguish between the two."
During the cabinet meeting, he said, "Alongside the great efforts we are making to return our abductees." He said, "We stand firm on the principles we have established, which are essential to Israel's security."
Netanyahu said that the principles are "consistent with the May 27 outline, which received American support."
However, he is reported to have since made demands that have not been included in that proposal.
On May 31, US President Joe Biden publicly presented Israel's proposal, which was shared with the White House. The framework for the deal included three stages, with the first six-week period seeing a pause in Israel's ground operations and withdrawal of soldiers in exchange for the release of 33 hostages in the categories of women, children, elderly and injured, and Israel releasing 990 Palestinian prisoners.
(With ANI inputs)
