Sent time2024-04-29 10:54
“Three quarters of the negotiations were about a ceasefire”… Biden reiterates concerns about Rafa’s ground battle
Are ceasefire talks gaining momentum? Observe fire support before Blinken’s visit to Israel
Biden and Netanyahu met in October last year
[로이터 연합뉴스 자료사진]
(Washington, Seoul = Yonhap News) Correspondent Joon-hyung Jo and Correspondent Ji-woo Lim = With the Israel-Hamas war at the crossroads of a ceasefire and intensification, the leaders of the United States and Israel held a telephone consultation on the 28th (US Eastern Time) to discuss a ceasefire and the ground battle in Rafah.
The White House said that in a phone call between the two leaders on this day, President Joe Biden reiterated to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu his “clear position” on Israel’s proposed attack on Rafah, the southernmost city in the Gaza Strip. .
The United States has raised concerns that there could be significant casualties if Israel launches a large-scale ground war because more than 1 million Gazan refugees remain in Rafah, the southernmost part of the Gaza Strip.
According to a Biden administration official, about three-quarters of the phone call, which lasted about an hour, involved negotiations on a ceasefire and hostage negotiations, the American daily New York Times (NYT) reported.
The official said that the leaders of the two countries agreed in a phone call that day that the success of the ceasefire talks depends on whether Hamas accepts the negotiation plan presented most recently, and that Hamas is responsible for the progress of the talks.
Previously, US officials claimed that Israel had accepted the ceasefire offered by mediators, including the US, and that Hamas was responsible for the deadlock in negotiations.
The phone call between the two leaders took place before US Secretary of State Tony Blinken’s visit to the Middle East to discuss a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.
Secretary Blinken, as well as foreign ministers from Western countries such as Germany, the UK, and France, and Arab countries such as Egypt and Qatar, are due to meet in Saudi Arabia on the 29th to discuss the ceasefire in the Strip Gaza.
NYT reported that the intention of President Biden’s phone call on this day was to prepare the way for negotiations before Secretary Blinken’s visit to the Middle East.
Secretary Blinken also plans to visit Jordan and Israel at a later date.
An Israeli delegation is also expected to be sent to Egypt soon to discuss the negotiation plan, and a high-ranking Hamas official also revealed to the Associated Press that a Hamas delegation is due to visit Cairo, Egypt, from raising questions about whether the long-. Ceasefire negotiations between the two sides may delay ending.
At a time when pro-Palestinian protests are spreading like wildfire on American university campuses, President Biden appears to have persuaded Prime Minister Netanyahu to fight on the ground in Rafah and again urged him to agree to a ceasefire over turn with Hamas in this phone call.
It is not immediately known what position Prime Minister Netanyahu expressed in this regard, but it is assumed that he stressed that if an agreement is not reached in the ongoing ceasefire negotiations, he will have no choice but to launch a ground war in Rafah to eliminate. the rest of Hamas.
On this day, the two leaders also discussed the hostage video released by Hamas last week, and President Biden also emphasized the importance of expanding humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, the White House reported.
The hostage video released by Hamas also included two American hostages.
Meanwhile, regarding the recent conflict between Israel and Iran, the White House said President Biden reaffirmed to Prime Minister Netanyahu “his firm commitment to Israel’s security following its successful defense against unprecedented Iranian missile and drone attacks earlier this month.”
jhcho@yna.co.kr
Report via KakaoTalk okjebo
< 更多代 (c) 周年物利,
Unauthorized reproduction/redistribution, learning and use of AI prohibited>
2024/04/29 10:54 Sent
#Biden #Netanyahu #talk #hour.. #Intense #discussion #Gaza #ceasefire #talks #comprehensive
