WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) – President Joe Biden and the leaders of Egypt and Qatar issued a rare joint statement to up the pressure on ceasefire negotiations for the war in Gaza.
These officials said a deal between Israel and Hamas is even more urgent due to increased tensions from Iran in the region.
“The framework of the deal is that there is a six-week ceasefire that would be agreed to once the deal is finalized,” said Matthew Miller, a spokesperson for the U.S. State Department.
The U.S., Egypt and Qatar are mediating the talks between Israel and Hamas and are demanding they resume next Thursday.
“We have made great headway,” Miller said. “But we need to finalize the agreement, and we need to finalize it as soon as possible.”
Officials said both sides have already agreed to the bulk of the deal. Now, it’s down to details, like the timing of a planned hostage and prisoner swap.
“We believe that a ceasefire would go a long way towards alleviating tensions in the region,” Miller said.
All eyes are on Iran after Israel’s assassinations of top leaders of its affiliated terror groups Hamas and Hezbollah.
“We continue to make clear to Iran that they should not escalate this conflict,” Miller said.
Officials are also blaming Iran for this week’s attack on a U.S. military base in Iraq.
“It was two rockets launched by what we believe to be an Iranian-backed Shia militia group,” said Sabrina Singh, the Pentagon’s deputy press secretary.
Singh said the strikes injured four service members and a contractor.
“Three of the five injured personnel have been transferred to Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany for additional treatment,” she said.
The contractor and remaining service member have returned to work, while the Pentagon continues to investigate how the rockets were able to reach their base.
