Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Monday called the latest Gaza cease-fire proposal, which would secure the release of hostages held by Hamas, “extraordinarily generous,” pressing the militant group to accept the offer by Israel as an expected invasion of Rafah looms.
“Hamas has before it a proposal that is extraordinarily, extraordinarily generous on the part of Israel and in this moment the only thing standing between the people of Gaza and a ceasefire is Hamas,” Blinken said at the World Economic Forum in Saudi Arabia on Monday. “They have to decide and they have to decide quickly.”
Officials from the U.S., Egypt and Qatar are scrambling to lock down a new deal between Israel and Hamas ahead of Israel’s expected launch of ground operations in the southern Gaza city of Rafah.
President Joe Biden on Monday is set to speak with the leaders of Qatar and Egypt about the proposal, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insists an invasion of Rafah is the necessary next step in its campaign to eliminate Hamas, despite objections from the U.S.
The White House has said it doesn’t support a full ground operation without a plan to protect the more than one million civilians who are taking refuge in the city. Blinken on Monday said that thus far, the U.S. has seen no such plan.
“In the absence of a plan to ensure that civilians will not be harmed, we can’t support a major military operation in Rafah,” Blinken said. “And we have not yet seen a plan that gives us confidence that civilians can be effectively protected.”
A White House readout of a phone call between Biden and Netanyahu on Sunday said the two leaders discussed Rafah and “the president reiterated his clear position,” without elaborating.
Asked to clarify during Monday’s press briefing whether that position is that the White House has concerns or that it will oppose a ground operation, Jean-Pierre said: “We have concerns about that and we want to talk and discuss.”
“We believe that they are going to take our concerns into account,” she added.
White House National Security Communications Advisor John Kirby on Sunday said Israel has “assured” the U.S. that it will hear its concerns before launching a full operation.
“They've assured us they won't go into Rafah until we've had a chance to really share our perspectives and concerns with them,” Kirby said in an interview on ABC’s “This Week.” “So we'll see where that goes.”
U.S. and Israeli officials have held two virtual meetings on the topic, but a planned meeting in person in Washington was scrapped last month by Netanyahu after the U.S. did not veto a U.N. Security Council resolution that demanded an immediate humanitarian cease-fire in Gaza and the release of hostages.
Jean-Pierre said the White House still hopes to have an in-person meeting.
Kirby on Sunday also noted that Hamas has not “fully rejected” the proposal currently on the table and it is still being considered.
During a meeting with foreign ministers of the Gulf Cooperation Council also in Saudi Arabia on Monday, Blinken also said the amount of humanitarian aid getting to civilians in Gaza was insufficient, adding during their phone call on Sunday, Biden told Netanyhu that Israel must take “specific, concrete, measurable steps to better address humanitarian suffering.”
“We have seen measurable progress in the last few weeks, including the opening of new crossings, an increased volume of aid delivery to Gaza and within Gaza, and the building of the U.S. maritime corridor, which will open in the coming weeks,” Blinken said. “But it is not enough.”
New northern crossings into Gaza are expected to open this week to increase the ground flow of aid into the Palestinian territory, according to the White House. The U.S. is also currently in the process of constructing a pier to facilitate the flow of aid through sea. Kirby on Sunday said it would be two to three weeks before the pier can be in operation.
Next week, Blinken will have to inform Congress on the Biden administration's determination as to whether Israel is using weapons provided to it by the U.S. in accordance with international law. The requirement is part of a memorandum issued by Biden earlier this year outlining guidelines countries who receive military aid from the U.S. must follow.
Blinken is on his seventh trip to the Middle East since Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel that left about 1,200 people dead and sparked the sixth-month-old war. More than 30,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s retaliatory operations.
The secretary is starting his latest visit to the region in Saudi Arabia before traveling to Jordan and Israel.
Before Hamas’ Oct. 7 the U.S. was working on a potential normalization of relations between Saudi Arabia and Israel. Biden has said such a possible development could have contributed to Hamas’ decision to attack.