US President Joe Biden stated on Saturday that a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas conflict could be achieved as early as “today” if the militant group releases its hostages.
“There would be a ceasefire tomorrow if Hamas would release the hostages,” Biden said at a fundraiser at the home of a former Microsoft executive.
“Israel said it’s up to Hamas, if they wanted to do it, we could end it today. And the ceasefire would begin today,” he added.
The most recent round of discussions between Israel and Hamas regarding a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of hostages ended this week without any apparent progress, with Israel insisting on invading Rafah.
“If they go into Rafah, I’m not supplying the weapons that have been used,” the US president told CNN earlier.
Biden and many European officials cautionned against a large-scale ground assault on Rafah following the Israeli military’s extension of evacuation orders for the city, which houses 1.4 million Palestinians.
So far, Israel had killed about 35,000 and wounded more than 79,000, mostly women and children.
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