UNITED NATIONS –
A Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal “now is in sight,” the U.S. envoy to the United Nations told the Security Council on Thursday, urging members to press Palestinian militant group Hamas to accept a bridging proposal agreed to by Israel.
Months of on-off talks have circled the same issues, but Israel and Hamas have stuck to their demands.
U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Linda Thomas-Greenfield said a bridging proposal put forward last week by the U.S., Qatar and Egypt was consistent with a plan outlined by President Joe Biden in May and endorsed by the Security Council in June.
“Israel has accepted the bridging proposal. Now Hamas must do the same,” she told the council. “As members of this council, we must speak with one voice, and we must use our leverage to press …