
Israel on Monday (August 19) voiced its backing for the United States' new hostage proposal. Describing it as a "bridging proposal," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for the first time publicly endorsed the latest US formula.
His office in a statement said that the PM during a three-hour meeting with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken "reiterated Israel's commitment to the current American proposal on the release of our hostages, which takes into account Israel's security needs, which he strongly insists on".
This comes after Israel on Saturday (August 17) cautiously welcomed the American proposal and in a PMO statement said that it "contains components that are acceptable to Israel."
Hamas, as per the Times of Israel, rejected the US proposal on Sunday night. The militant group reportedly said using the proposal Netanyahu "sets new conditions and demands" to thwart the talks and prolong the war in Gaza.
It further claimed that the US-backed text was in alignment with Israel's demands.
The United States-backed proposal seeks to finalise a hostages-for-ceasefire deal by the end of this week.
According to the report, the proposal aims to resolve disputes regarding the ongoing presence of Israeli forces along the Gaza-Egypt border and in the Netzarim Corridor in central Gaza, as well as other contentious issues.
However, Hebrew media on Saturday citing unnamed officials familiar with the talks reported that the proposal fails to provide for an ongoing Israeli presence on the Philadelphi Corridor on the border with Egypt. Similarly, it does not offer a plan for preventing the return of armed Hamas forces to the northern part of the Strip in central Gaza, as insisted by Benjamin Netanyahu.
(With inputs from agencies)