Biden Says Netanyahu Is Not Doing Enough to Free Israeli Hostages

[Pelican Press 0]

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Biden Says Netanyahu Is Not Doing Enough to Free ******** Hostages

The draft agreement calls for a major reduction in ******** forces in the corridor during the first phase of the cease-*****, and full withdrawal thereafter. ******** government negotiators have agreed to the phased withdrawal, but Mr. Netanyahu has backed away from that part of the deal, triggering an open dispute with his own defense minister, Yoav Gallant.

“It is too late for the hostages who were murdered in cold blood,” Mr. Gallant said on Sunday, declaring that Mr. Netanyahu had to drop his insistence on the presence of troops in the corridor. “We must bring back the hostages that are still being held by ******.”

White House officials are considering pushing another “final” draft of the agreement in coming days, after the region has cooled off from the ********** of the hostages.

There have been other final drafts. A week and a half ago, White House and State Department officials said there would be a meeting of the negotiators, except for ******, to approve a final accord. That meeting never happened after Yahya Sinwar, the ****** leader, rejected elements of it, and Mr. Netanyahu insisted on the continued military presence in the corridor.

After the Situation Room meeting on Monday, Mr. Biden said little about his strategy over the next days and weeks, including whether there would be a presentation of another final draft. “We’re in the middle of negotiations,’’ Mr. Biden said to reporters after the meeting, on the way to a campaign event with Ms. Harris in Pennsylvania.

Mr. Biden ignored a question about Mr. Netanyahu’s defiant stance during a news conference in ******* on Monday, when the prime minister questioned what message it would send to ****** after the deaths of the hostages if ******* let up in the fighting. “Slay hostages and you’ll get concessions?” the prime minister said.

Mr. Biden would only say that “we’re still in negotiations — not with him, but with my colleagues from Qatar and Egypt.”

Ms. Harris did not talk about the strategy. At the Democratic National Convention two weeks ago, she strongly backed *******, while saying more had to be done to relieve the sufferings of the ************ people. But she has been careful to hew closely to the administration’s current policy, and deflected calls from the progressive wing of the party to cut off at least some weapons shipments to *******, a step the British took on Monday.

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#Biden #Netanyahu #Free #******** #Hostages

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