US expects hostage talks to resume but says Iranian attack on Israel may impact them
White House releases statement with UK, France, Germany, Italy urging de-escalation, expressing support for Israel in event of an attack
WASHINGTON – The US expects Gaza peace talks to move forward as planned, the State Department said on Monday, adding it believes a ceasefire deal remains possible even after Hamas cast doubt on whether it would participate in a Thursday meeting called by mediators.
Palestinian terrorist group Hamas on Sunday asked mediators to present a plan based upon previous talks instead of engaging in new negotiations for a Gaza ceasefire agreement.
Last week, leaders of the US, Egypt and Qatar urged Israel and Hamas to meet for negotiations on August 15 in either Cairo or Doha to finalize a Gaza ceasefire and hostage-release deal. Israel said it would send its delegation to the talks.
State Department deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel, speaking to reporters at a regular news briefing on Monday, said the US fully expects talks to continue and it would continue to work with the parties involved, adding that agreement was still possible.
“We fully expect talks to move forward, as they should. All negotiators should return to the table and bring this deal to conclusion,” Patel said.
Patel declined to say whether the talks would go ahead without Hamas or whether Washington was working with regional partners to ensure their participation or not.
Meanwhile, the White House said on Monday that Iran could launch a “significant” attack on Israel as soon as this week and that such an attack could affect the hostage talks.
“We share the same concerns and expectations that our Israeli counterparts have with respect to potential timing here — could be this week,” said National Security Council spokesman John Kirby, adding that such an attack could potentially affect negotiations between Hamas and Israel.
Israel has been bracing for an attack from Iran since the end of July when Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was assassinated in Tehran. Israel has not confirmed nor denied its involvement in the killing, but Iran has said repeatedly that it will retaliate against Israel regardless.
US President Joe Biden spoke on Monday to the leaders of France, Germany, Italy and the UK to discuss de-escalating the tensions in the Middle East and a ceasefire in Gaza, a White House spokesperson said.
In a joint statement released by the White House on Monday, the leaders of all five countries said they endorsed the call from the United States, Qatar and Egypt for a renewal of talks for a Gaza ceasefire to conclude a deal as soon as possible.
The statement also expressed support for Israel against any Iranian threat while urging distribution and delivery of aid to Gaza.
Biden welcomed and laid out a three-phase Israeli ceasefire-for-hostages proposal in an address on May 31. Washington and regional mediators have since tried to finalize a deal but have run into repeated obstacles.
The war in Gaza broke out on October 7 with Hamas’s unprecedented surprise attack in which its terrorists murdered some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took 251 hostages.
It is believed that 111 hostages remain in Gaza, including the bodies of 39 confirmed dead by the IDF.
Hamas released 105 civilians during a weeklong truce in late November, and four hostages were released before that. Seven hostages have been rescued by troops alive, and the bodies of 24 hostages have also been recovered, including three abductees mistakenly killed by the military as they tried to escape their captors.
Ongoing talks in recent months have aimed to reach another deal that would see hostages released in exchange for a pause in fighting and the release of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli prisons, but negotiations have repeatedly stalled as Israel and Hamas accuse each other of sabotaging them.
