US President Biden is putting pressure on Israel’s head of government in talks to ensure that a ceasefire agreement is finally reached. Fears of an escalation in the Middle East remain.
The USA, as Israel’s most important ally, wants to do everything in its power to prevent the difficult negotiations on a ceasefire in the Gaza war from failing. In a telephone conversation with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, US President Joe Biden again stressed the urgency of an agreement that includes the release of the hostages in the hands of the Islamist Hamas. He had spoken to Netanyahu about “upcoming talks” in the Egyptian capital Cairo “to remove all remaining obstacles,” Biden subsequently wrote on the X platform.
One of the biggest points of contention is Israel’s demand for permanent control of the southern border between the Gaza Strip and Egypt by Israeli security forces. The Israeli Prime Minister’s office denied a media report in the evening that Netanyahu had agreed to Israel withdrawing from the so-called Philadelphia Corridor. Israel insists “that all of its war goals, as set out by the Security Cabinet, are achieved,” it said. This includes “that the Gaza Strip never again poses a security threat to Israel. This requires securing the southern border.”
Hamas accuses Israel of blocking negotiations on an agreement by refusing to withdraw from the 14-kilometer-long Philadelphia Corridor on the border with Egypt. The Islamists are demanding a complete withdrawal of the Israeli military from the Gaza Strip.
Netanyahu, on the other hand, demands that the army continue to control the corridor even after a ceasefire, for example to prevent weapons smuggling. Israel’s Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi said during a visit to the area a few days ago that the army could maintain control there without a permanent presence and with only sporadic advances.
Israel declares Hamas brigade in Rafah defeated
During a visit to the border area between the Gaza Strip and Egypt, Israeli Defense Minister Joav Galant announced that the Hamas brigade there had been defeated. “The Rafah brigade has been defeated and more than 150 tunnels in this region have been destroyed,” said Galant. He had instructed the troops to concentrate on destroying the remaining tunnels on the border between the coastal strip and Egypt in the coming period.
In May, despite massive international criticism, Israel’s army advanced into Rafah to destroy the remaining Hamas forces there. Around a million refugees who were estimated to have crowded into the city left the city. Israeli troops also captured the Rafah border crossing to Egypt and the Philadelphia Corridor.
The dispute over control of this area is one of the obstacles mentioned by Biden in the negotiations on a ceasefire and the release of the hostages. According to a recent report by the US news portal Politico, which cites two Israeli and two US officials, an agreement is on the verge of failure without there being a clear alternative.
Fear of escalation in the Middle East
In view of the growing pessimism, Biden applied further pressure in a telephone call with Netanyahu. US Vice President Kamala Harris, who wants to succeed Biden after the presidential election on November 5, was also present at the conversation, the White House said.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken had previously held talks in Israel, Egypt and Qatar to help the negotiations to reach a breakthrough. The two Arab states are mediating with the US between Israel and Hamas, as they are not negotiating directly with each other. According to information from Israeli journalist Barak Ravid, the next summit of the mediators is to take place in Cairo this weekend.
“We must get the ceasefire and hostage release agreement across the finish line,” Blinken said upon his departure from Qatar. Time is of the essence because the lives of the hostages are in greater danger with each passing day.
If mediation efforts fail, there are fears of a major escalation in the Middle East. After the killing of two high-ranking enemies of Israel in the Iranian capital Tehran and the Lebanese capital Beirut almost three weeks ago, Iran and the Hezbollah militia threatened massive retaliatory strikes.
Against this backdrop, Biden and Netanyahu also discussed ongoing US efforts to support “Israel’s defense against all threats from Iran, including its proxy terrorist groups Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis,” the White House said.
The USA has further increased its military presence in the region. As the US regional command Centcom announced on Platform X, the aircraft carrier “USS Abraham Lincoln” and its accompanying ships have now arrived in the Middle East after US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin ordered the journey to the region to be accelerated. The aircraft carrier with its modern F-35 fighter jets complements the aircraft carrier “USS Theodore Roosevelt” already stationed there.
The Gaza war was triggered by the worst massacre in Israel’s history, with more than 1,200 deaths, which was carried out by terrorists from Hamas and other extremist groups on October 7 last year. More than 250 hostages were taken from Israel to Gaza. According to the Hamas-controlled health authority, more than 40,000 people were killed and almost 93,000 others injured in the subsequent Israeli offensive in the sealed-off coastal strip. The figures, which cannot be independently verified, do not distinguish between fighters and civilians.
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
