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Biden Admin Continues Pushing Gaza Ceasefire Proposal Despite Hamas Rejection, Israeli Reservations
US President Joe Biden speaks on the phone with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in this White House handout image taken in the Oval Office in Washington, US, April 4, 2024. Photo: The White House/Handout via REUTERS
The Biden administration is still publicly pressuring both Israel and Hamas to accept a ceasefire deal unveiled by US President Joe Biden last week to end the fighting in Gaza, despite the Palestinian terror group seemingly rejecting the proposal and issuing statements irreconcilable with Israel’s position.
Leaders of Hamas, which rules Gaza, have for months refused to make concessions for a truce, insisting on a permanent ceasefire and full Israeli withdrawal in order to reach an agreement. The Islamist terror group, which launched the ongoing war with its Oct. 7 massacre across southern Israel, has argued that the current iteration of the ceasefire deal does not guarantee either condition.
“We informed the mediators that we could not agree to a deal that would not guarantee a permanent ceasefire and a complete withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, along with a serious prisoner deal,” senior Hamas official Osama Hamdan told a televised press conference earlier this week.
On Thursday, Hamdan dismissed the terms of the ceasefire as “just words.”
“There is no proposal — they are just words said by Biden in a speech,” he told AFP. “So far, the Americans have not presented anything documented or written that commits them to what Biden said in his speech.”
Another senior Hamas official, Sami Abu Zuhri, welcomed what he called “Biden‘s ideas” but similarly said Hamas’ demands were not met.
“The Israeli documents speak of open-ended negotiation with no deadline, and it speaks of a stage during which the occupation regains its hostages and resumes the war,” he told Reuters, referring to the hostages who Hamas terrorists kidnapped and brought to Gaza on Oct. 7. “We had told the mediators that such a paper wasn’t acceptable to us.”
Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh echoed those sentiments on Wednesday in what appeared to be the terrorist group’s reply to Biden’s proposal.
In a speech last Friday, Biden disclosed that a day earlier, a new three-phase Israeli proposal for a hostage deal was passed onto Hamas through Qatar and detailed some of its main terms.
Biden said the deal would “bring all the hostages home, ensure Israel’s security, create a better day after in Gaza without Hamas in power, and set the stage for a political settlement that provides a better future for Israelis and Palestinians alike.”
The first phase of the ceasefire plan, as described by Biden, would last six weeks and include a “full and complete ceasefire” between Israel and Hamas and the “withdrawal of Israeli forces from all populated areas of Gaza.” It would also include the “release of a number of hostages” in exchange for “the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners.”
During this six-week period, Israel and Hamas would negotiate the “necessary arrangements” in order to transition to the second phase and a “permanent end” to the war, including a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, Biden explained.
One sticking point could be whether Hamas is allowed to remain in power in Gaza.
Yahya Sinwar, the leader of Hamas in Gaza and the mastermind of the Oct. 7 massacre, asserted that the group will not accept any ceasefire deal that requires disarmament.
“Hamas will not surrender its guns or sign a proposal that asks for that,” Sinwar said this week, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Meanwhile, Israeli officials have also expressed reservations about the current version of the ceasefire deal, despite Biden describing it as an Israeli proposal. Israel has suggested the deal could prevent the Jewish state from achieving its war aims of freeing the hostages and eradicating the Hamas terror threat from its border.
On Saturday, the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu released a statement saying that any deal must allow for “Israel to continue the war until all its objectives are achieved, including the destruction of Hamas’ military and governing capabilities.”
“Israel will continue to insist these conditions are met before a permanent ceasefire is put in place,” Netanyahu continued.
On Monday, Netanyahu said that Biden had disclosed only part of the proposal aimed at achieving a ceasefire in Gaza and securing the release of Israeli hostages, and added that he had not agreed to end Israel’s military operations against Hamas.
“The proposal contains more details that Biden did not mention,” Netanyahu reportedly told Israeli lawmakers.
“Biden omitted one crucial detail regarding the second stage” of the deal, Netanyahu said.
“Israel didn’t agree to end the war, but only to ‘discuss’ its end,” he explained, adding that such a discussion would occur after the hostages were returned and “only on our terms.”
“Despite what President Biden said, the number of hostages that will be released in the first phase has not yet been agreed upon. There are many details in the deal, and the war will not end without us achieving all of our objectives. We will not give up on absolute victory,” he said.
Senior Netanyahu adviser Ophir Falk on Sunday gave a lukewarm endorsement to the ceasefire proposal. He conceded that it’s “not a good deal,” but underlined the importance of securing the return of the remaining hostages currently being held captive in Gaza.
There is widespread dissatisfaction among senior Israeli officials who feel Biden’s remarks lacked specifics on how the stated goal of dismantling Hamas would be accomplished, fueling criticism that the US president misrepresented the full scope of Israel’s uncompromising stance in fully defeating the Palestinian terror group.
“People have unfortunately been led to believe that a permanent ceasefire kicks in without Israel’s conditions being met,” Falk told The Algemeiner on Monday. “The notion that there will be a permanent ceasefire before Hamas’ military and governing capabilities are destroyed and all our hostages are home is a non-starter.”
Despite repeated rejections of the ceasefire deal by Hamas and hesitance by Israel, the Biden administration has argued that an agreement between Israel and the terrorist group is still attainable.
White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan stated during a Wednesday interview that the ceasefire deal is still “on the table.”
State department spokesperson Matthew Miller confirmed on Thursday that the US has not received “an official response from Hamas” regarding the ceasefire deal and said the administration is still pushing for the agreement.
The White House released a joint statement on Thursday with the governments of Argentina, Austria, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Colombia, Denmark, France, Germany, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Spain, Thailand, and the United Kingdom, calling on Hamas to accept the ceasefire proposal.
“We call on Hamas to close this agreement, that Israel is ready to move forward with, and begin the process of releasing our citizens,” the statement read.
The US has recently praised Israel for its willingness to make compromises in ceasefire negotiations, while describing Hamas as an “obstacle” to a truce.
Neither the White House nor the US State Department responded to requests for comment on how the Biden administration hopes practically to achieve its ceasefire proposal given the recent statements from Israel and Hamas.
The post Biden Admin Continues Pushing Gaza Ceasefire Proposal Despite Hamas Rejection, Israeli Reservations first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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US Immigration Judge Rules Palestinian Columbia Student Khalil Can Be Deported
Mahmoud Khalil speaks to members of media about the Revolt for Rafah encampment at Columbia University during the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas in Gaza, in New York City, US, June 1, 2024. Photo: Jeenah Moon via Reuters Connect
A US immigration judge ruled on Friday that Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil can be deported, allowing President Donald Trump’s administration to proceed with its effort to remove the Columbia University student from the United States a month after his arrest in New York City.
The ruling by Judge Jamee Comans of the LaSalle Immigration Court in Louisiana was not a final determination of Khalil’s fate. But it represented a significant victory for the Republican president in his efforts to deport foreign pro-Palestinian students who are in the United States legally and, like Khalil, have not been charged with any crime.
Citing the 1952 Immigration and Nationality Act, Trump-appointed US Secretary of State Marco Rubio determined last month that Khalil could harm American foreign policy interests and should be deported for his “otherwise lawful” speech and activism.
Comans said that she did not have the authority to overrule a secretary of state. The judge denied a motion by Khalil’s lawyers to subpoena Rubio and question him about the “reasonable grounds” he had for his determination under the 1952 law.
The judge’s decision came after a combative 90-minute hearing held in a court located inside a jail complex for immigrants surrounded by double-fenced razor wire run by private government contractors in rural Louisiana.
Khalil, a prominent figure in the anti-Israel student protest movement that has roiled Columbia’s New York City campus, was born in a Palestinian refugee camp in Syria, holds Algerian citizenship and became a US lawful permanent resident last year. Khalil’s wife is a US citizen.
For now, Khalil remains in the Louisiana jail where federal authorities transferred him after his March 8 arrest at his Columbia University apartment building some 1,200 miles (1,930 km) away. Comans gave Khalil’s lawyers until April 23 to apply for relief before she considers whether to issue a deportation order. An immigration judge can rule that a migrant cannot be deported because of possible persecution in a home country, among other limited grounds.
In a separate case in New Jersey, US District Judge Michael Farbiarz has blocked deportation while he considers Khalil’s claim that his arrest was made in violation of the US Constitution’s First Amendment protections for freedom of speech.
KHALIL ADDRESSES THE JUDGE
As Comans adjourned, Khalil leaned forward, asking to address the court. Comans hesitated, then agreed.
Khalil quoted her remarks at his hearing on Tuesday that nothing was more important to the court than “due process rights and fundamental fairness.”
“Clearly what we witnessed today, neither of these principles were present today or in this whole process,” Khalil said. “This is exactly why the Trump administration has sent me to this court, a thousand miles away from my family.”
The judge said her ruling turned on an undated, two-page letter signed by Rubio and submitted to the court and to Khalil’s counsel.
Khalil’s lawyers, appearing via a video link, complained they were given less than 48 hours to review Rubio’s letter and evidence submitted by the Trump administration to Comans this week. Marc Van Der Hout, Khalil’s lead immigration attorney, repeatedly asked for the hearing to be delayed. Comans reprimanded him for what the judge said was straying from the hearing’s purpose, twice saying he had “an agenda.”
Comans said that the 1952 immigration law gave the secretary of state “unilateral judgment” to make his determination about Khalil.
Khalil should be removed, Rubio wrote, for his role in “antisemitic protests and disruptive activities, which fosters a hostile environment for Jewish students in the United States.”
Rubio’s letter did not accuse Khalil of breaking any laws, but said the State Department can revoke the legal status of immigrants who could harm US foreign policy interests even when their beliefs, associations or statements are “otherwise lawful.”
After Comans ended the hearing, several of Khalil’s supporters wept as they left the courtroom. Khalil stood and smiled at them, making a heart shape with his hands.
Khalil has said criticism of the US government’s support of Israel is being wrongly conflated with antisemitism. His lawyers told the court they were submitting into evidence Khalil’s interviews last year with CNN and other news outlets in which he denounces antisemitism and other prejudice.
His lawyers have said the Trump administration was targeting him for protected speech including the right to criticize American foreign policy.
“Mahmoud was subject to a charade of due process, a flagrant violation of his right to a fair hearing and a weaponization of immigration law to suppress dissent,” Van Der Hout said in a statement after the hearing.
The American immigration court system is run and its judges are appointed by the US Justice Department, separate from the government’s judicial branch.
The post US Immigration Judge Rules Palestinian Columbia Student Khalil Can Be Deported first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Hamas Releases Video of Israeli-American Hostage Held in Gaza
FILE PHOTO: Yael, Adi and Mika Alexander, the family of Edan Alexander, the American-Israeli and Israel Defense Forces soldier taken hostage during the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel by Hamas, pose for a photograph during an interview with Reuters at the Alexander’s home in Tenafly, New Jersey, U.S., December 14, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Stephani Spindel/File Photo
Hamas on Saturday released a video purportedly of Israeli-American hostage Edan Alexander, who has been held in Gaza since he was captured by Palestinian terrorists on October 7, 2023.
In the undated video, the man who introduces himself as Edan Alexander states he has been held in Gaza for 551 days. The man questions why he is still being held and pleads for his release.
Alexander is a soldier serving in the Israeli military.
The edited video was released as Jews began to mark Passover, a weeklong holiday that celebrates freedom. Alexander’s family released a statement acknowledging the video that said the holiday would not be one of freedom as long as Edan and the 58 other hostages in Gaza remained in captivity.
Hamas has released several videos over the course of the war of hostages begging to be released. Israeli officials have dismissed past videos as propaganda that is designed to put pressure on the government. The war is in its eighteenth month.
Hamas released 38 hostages under a ceasefire that began on January 19. In March, Israel’s military resumed its ground and aerial campaign on Gaza, abandoning the ceasefire after Hamas rejected proposals to extend the truce without ending the war.
Israeli officials say that campaign will continue until the remaining 59 hostages are freed and Gaza is demilitarized. Hamas insists it will free hostages only as part of a deal to end the war and has rejected demands to lay down its arms.
The US, Qatar and Egypt are mediating between Hamas and Israel.
The post Hamas Releases Video of Israeli-American Hostage Held in Gaza first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Some Progress in Hostage Talks But Major Issues Remain, Source tells i24NEWS
Demonstrators hold signs and pictures of hostages, as relatives and supporters of Israeli hostages kidnapped during the Oct. 7, 2023 attack by Hamas protest demanding the release of all hostages in Tel Aviv, Israel, Feb. 13, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Itai Ron
i24 News – A source familiar with the ongoing negotiations for a hostage deal confirmed to i24NEWS on Friday that some progress has been made in talks, currently taking place with Egypt, including the exchange of draft proposals. However, it remains unclear whether Hamas will ultimately accept the emerging framework. According to the source, discussions are presently focused on reaching a cohesive outline with Cairo.
A delegation of senior Hamas officials is expected to arrive in Cairo tomorrow. While there is still no finalized draft, even Arab sources acknowledge revisions to Egypt’s original proposal, reportedly including a degree of flexibility in the number of hostages Hamas is willing to release.
The source noted that Hamas’ latest proposal to release five living hostages is unacceptable to Israel, which continues to adhere to the “Witkoff framework.” At the core of this framework is the release of a significant number of hostages, alongside a prolonged ceasefire period—Israel insists on 40 days, while Hamas is demanding more. The plan avoids intermittent pauses or distractions, aiming instead for uninterrupted discussions on post-war arrangements.
As previously reported, Israel is also demanding comprehensive medical and nutritional reports on all living hostages as an early condition of the deal.
“For now,” the source told i24NEWS, “Hamas is still putting up obstacles. We are not at the point of a done deal.” Israeli officials emphasize that sustained military and logistical pressure on Hamas is yielding results, pointing to Hamas’ shift from offering one hostage to five in its most recent agreement.
Negotiators also assert that Israel’s demands are fully backed by the United States. Ultimately, Israeli officials are adamant: no negotiations on the “day after” will take place until the hostage issue is resolved—a message directed not only at Hamas, but also at mediators.
The post Some Progress in Hostage Talks But Major Issues Remain, Source tells i24NEWS first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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