US Says 'Closer' On Israel-Hamas Deal As Hostage Families Confront Minister

United States President Joe Biden believed that an accord between Israel and Hamas was near to free the hostages held by the Palestinian militant group.

Families of hostages stage demonstration outside the UNICEF headquarters in Tel Aviv on November 20, 2023.

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Israel and Hamas are getting close to a deal that would secure the release of the hostages held in Gaza, believes the United States after a similar report stating that the two parties are close to a breakthrough was denied by the US and Israel last week. 

On Monday, US President Joe Biden said that he believed an accord was near, reported Reuters. "We're closer now than we've been before," said White House spokesman John Kirby. 

Following the October 7 surprise attacks by Hamas on Israel that killed 1,200 people, the Palestinian militant group escaped with 240 hostages. 

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said in a statement on Monday that its president Mirjana Spoljaric met with Hamas leader  Ismail Haniyeh to "advance humanitarian issues" related to the conflict, the report added. She also separately met with Qatari authorities. 

ICRC, however, said that it was not a part of the negotiations aimed at the release of the hostages but was ready to "to facilitate any future release that the parties agree to" as a neutral intermediary. 

A report published by Washington Post on Saturday stated that Israel and Hamas were close to reaching a deal, brokered by the US, to pause the fighting for five days, allowing humanitarian aid to reach Gaza and freeing up some hostages by Hamas. 

But the report was denied by the US and Israel. 

Families Of Hostages Clash With Israeli Minister 

Families of the hostages held by Hamas clashed with far-right Israeli politicians — who are mulling death penalty for captured Palestinian militants — as they fear that even talk of doing so might endanger the lives of their relatives. They also staged a demonstration outside UNICEF office in Tel Aviv to highlight the estimated 40 children who are among the 240 hostages held.

“I beg you not to capitalise on our suffering now … when the lives of our loved ones are at stake, when the sword is at their necks,” Gil Dickmann, whose cousin is a hostage, told Israel’s national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, according to Haaretz.

Another demonstrator whose sister was held as hostage urged not to "play along with [the] mind games" of Hamas by thinking of giving capital punishment. 

“And in return we would get pictures of our loved ones murdered, ended, with the state of Israel and not them [Hamas] being blamed for it …. Don’t pursue this until after they are back here,” she said. “Don’t put my sister’s blood on your hands," reported Guardian.

Reacting to confrontation by the relatives of the hostages, far-right politicians shouted that they did not have “a monopoly of pain” in comments that appalled many Israelis, the Guardia report added.

Netanhyahu Meets Irate Families

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday met with the families of the hostages in Tel Aviv. The irate family members were fumed after some of them were denied entry into the meeting held at the Kirya military headquarters and had to wait outside in the cold for more than an hour, reprorted the Times of Israel, adding that eventually everyone was allowed to enter. 

However, the representatives were left further infuriated after Netanyahun told them that the goal of destroying Hamas is on equal footing with that of returning the hostages, Udi Goren, whose cousin is Gaza hostage Tal Haimi, told reporters after coming out of the meeting.

The families of the hostages felt that their loved ones are being allowed to remain in Gaza for more time, as a result, according to the Times of Israel report.