Written by Andrea Shalal
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. President Joe Biden spoke on Sunday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, a source familiar with the matter said, as U.S. officials seek to reach an agreement on hostages in Gaza and a ceasefire before Biden leaves office on January 20.
The source said that Biden and Netanyahu discussed ongoing efforts to reach an agreement to stop the fighting in the Palestinian Strip and release the remaining 98 hostages held there.
Jake Sullivan, Biden's national security adviser, told CNN's “State of the Union” earlier Sunday that the two sides were “very close” to reaching an agreement, but still had to get it to the finish line.
He said Biden is receiving daily updates on the talks in Doha, where Israeli and Palestinian officials have said since Thursday that some progress has been made in indirect talks between Israel and the armed Hamas movement.
“We remain determined to use every day we are in office to get this done, and we are not setting this aside by any means,” Sullivan said.
He said there was still a chance to reach an agreement before Biden leaves office, but it was also possible that “Hamas, in particular, will remain stubborn.”
Israel launched its attack on Gaza after Hamas fighters stormed its border in October 2023, killing 1,200 people and taking more than 250 hostage, according to Israeli statistics.
Since then, more than 46,000 people have been killed in Gaza, according to Palestinian health officials, with much of the Strip destroyed and in a humanitarian crisis, with most of its population displaced.
Vice President-elect J.D. Vance told “Fox News Sunday” in a taped interview Saturday that he expects to announce an agreement to release American hostages in the Middle East in the final days of the Biden administration, possibly next year. Last day or two.
President-elect Donald Trump, a staunch supporter of Israel, has strongly supported Netanyahu's goal of destroying Hamas. He promised to bring peace to the Middle East, but did not explain how he would achieve it.
