White House: Hostage deal still possible before Jan. 20, but it will require further compromise

White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby says he believes a hostage deal is possible before US President Joe Biden leaves office on January 20.

Asked during a press briefing to elaborate on the similarly optimistic message offered by Biden yesterday, Kirby declines to do so in order to not harm the ongoing negotiations.

He clarifies that when Biden said yesterday that he had met with the US negotiating team led by White House Middle East czar Brett McGurk, the president meant that he spoke with him on the phone.

“Do I think it’s possible? Yes, we think it’s possible, but not without a lot of hard work still ahead of us,” Kirby says.

“We believe it is possible, but it won’t be possible without additional compromise and some hard work,” he adds.

He reiterates the US belief that “Hamas continues to be difficult at the table,” while declining to elaborate as to how. “Why Brett is still there, and why we still don’t have a deal has to do with with with obstacles that Hamas continues to throw up.”