Blinken: We’re inside 10-yard line in hostage talks, but last 10 yards the hardest

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken says “we’re inside the 10-yard line and driving toward the goal line on getting an agreement that would produce a ceasefire, get the hostages home and put us on a better track to trying to build lasting peace and stability.”

Blinken tells the Aspen Security Forum Israel and Hamas have agreed on a framework for a deal that was laid out by US President Joe Biden in May and that they’re now working to resolve remaining issues.

This is something that US officials have been asserting for the past week, but it’s unclear whether there has been a tangible improvement from where the sides were at the beginning of the the month when Hamas issued an updated hostage that drew optimism from Israel and mediating countries.

Then too, US officials said they were working on closing the gaps between the sides.

During this time, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has made new demands regarding continued Israeli presence in the Philadelphi Corridor and the creation of a mechanism for preventing armed Palestinians from returning to northern Gaza that have slowed the talks, Arab and Israeli officials involved have told The Times of Israel.

“The last 10 yards are often the hardest,” Blinken says in Aspen.