By Marlyn Montilla
Feb 27, 2024, 3:35 PM EST
President Joe Biden affirmed that Israel will be willing to stop the armed conflict against the Islamist group Hamas in the Gaza Strip in the following Muslim fasting month of Ramadan if an agreement is reached to release some hostages held by the Palestinians.
The Democrat’s comments were recorded Monday and aired early Tuesday on NBC’s “Late Night with Seth Meyers.”
“Ramadan is approaching and the Israelis have agreed that they will not participate in activities during Ramadan, to give us time to remove all the hostages,” Biden told Meyers.
Previously, the president told reporters that he hoped a ceasefire would begin at least “by the end of the weekend,” Fox News reported.
“At least my national security advisor tells me we are close. We are close. “It’s not done yet,” Biden said at an ice cream parlor near the Peacock Network headquarters after recording his interview with Meyers.
“And my hope is that next Monday we will have a ceasefire,” he added.
Negotiators from the United States, Egypt and Qatar are struggling to reach a deal under which Hamas would release a few dozen hostages in exchange for the release of Palestinian prisoners and a six-week cessation of fighting. During the break, conversations would continue about the release of the remaining captives.
For its part, the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu previously stated that the Army made known to the War Cabinet its operational plan for a ground offensive in Rafah, bordering Gaza and Egypt, where 1.4 Palestinians have sought refuge. AP reported.
The war between Israel and Hamas has caused a humanitarian crisis in Gaza and the situation in Rafah has caused global concern. Israel’s allies have warned that it must protect civilians in the middle of the conflict.
Nearly 30,000 Palestinians have lost their lives in just under five months of war in the Gaza Strip, according to the Health Ministry, which is headed by Hamas. The Israelis say they have killed 10,000 militants, but without giving evidence of this.
The war began after gunmen led by the Hamas group swept through southern Israel on October 7, leaving 1,200 people dead, most of them civilians, and taking more than 250 hostage.
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