US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said that no progress has been made on a potential hostage and ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas, and blamed the terrorist organization for the failure to advance an agreement.
"There has not been any movement in the past few days,” Miller said of the hostage talks during a press briefing today (Thursday).
“There is a proposal on the table that answers much of the demands that Hamas made in previous rounds of negotiations. Israel made a significant offer in this last proposal that went forward [in which] they compromised on many long-held positions that they had taken, and as I said, met many of the demands that Hamas had said they needed to agree to a deal, so we believe it’s now incumbent upon them to take the deal. The deal that they demanded, that has been offered, they should accept and move forward," he said.
Miller stated that “ it is Hamas that is is the only barrier to a ceasefire right now and immediate ceasefire, and we are awaiting their response."
The State Department spokesperson also criticized Hamas for "hiding itself in civilian sites, using ambulances to hide the passage of fighters around territory, embedding themselves under hospitals, inside hospitals."