Joe Biden, Benjamin Netanyahu discuss progress on Gaza ceasefire-hostage deal

US President Joe Biden spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to discuss the progress of ongoing negotiations regarding the ceasefire-hostage deal in relation to the situation in Gaza, the White House said in a statement on Sunday (local time).

Currently, negotiation on the Gaza ceasefire-hostage deal is taking place in Doha, Qatar, which involves a high-level Israeli delegation including Mossad Director David Barnea, Director of Israel’s Internal Security Agency Ronen Bar, Netanyahu’s Foreign Policy Adviser Ophir Falk and others.

According to the statement, the ceasefire-hostage discussions were centred around a plan based on the May 27, 2024, arrangement outlined by President Biden last year and endorsed by the UN Security Council.

“President Biden spoke today with Prime Minister Netanyahu of Israel. The two leaders discussed the ongoing negotiations in Doha for a ceasefire and hostage release deal based on the May 27, 2024, arrangement described by the President last year and endorsed unanimously by the UN Security Council,” the White House statement read.

According to CNN, Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir had previously rejected the proposal.

President Biden also highlighted the changed regional circumstances following the ceasefire in Lebanon, the fall of the Assad regime in Syria, and the shift in Iran’s influence in the region and emphasised the urgency of securing a ceasefire in Gaza, the return of hostages, and the increase of humanitarian aid through a halt in the fighting.

“The President discussed the fundamentally changed regional circumstances following the ceasefire deal in Lebanon, the fall of the Assad regime in Syria, and the weakening of Iran’s power in the region. He stressed the immediate need for a ceasefire in Gaza and the return of the hostages with a surge in humanitarian aid enabled by a stoppage in the fighting under the deal,” the statement added.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Netanyahu updated the US President on the mandate he had given his negotiating team in Doha and further thanked Biden as well as US President-elect Donald Trump for their cooperation.

“The Prime Minister discussed with the American President the progress in the negotiations to release our hostages and updated him on the mandate he gave to the negotiating team to Doha in order to advance the release of our hostages. Prime Minister Netanyahu thanked President Biden and President-elect Donald Trump for cooperating in this sacred mission,” a statement from the Israel Prime Minister’s Office stated.

Earlier in 2024, Qatar had mediated the war and pushed the warring groups into a week-long ceasefire that was in effect from November 24 to December 1.