White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said on Sunday the United States is still “feverishly” working in Cairo toward reaching a deal for a ceasefire in Gaza and a hostage release deal.
Speaking at a news conference in Halifax, Canada, Sullivan added the United States is concerned about the Middle East conflict escalating to a broader war.
He also noted that the Biden administration is in consistent communication with Israel about the current situation with Hezbollah.
Earlier on Sunday, two Egyptian security sources told Reuters that talks over a possible ceasefire in Gaza and hostage release deal ended without agreement in Cairo.
The sources added that neither Hamas nor Israel had agreed to several compromises presented by mediators.
A US official quoted by Axios said, "Senior level talks in Cairo over recent days, including with representatives from Hamas and Israel, have been constructive and were conducted in a spirit on all sides to reach a final and implementable agreement.”
“The process will continue over the coming days through working groups to further address remaining issues and details," the official added.
Earlier on Sunday evening, Hamas again rejected a proposal for a hostage deal that was presented to it.
Senior Hamas official Osama Hamdan told Al-Aqsa TV that "Israel has set new conditions for accepting the agreement and reverted from what it had previously agreed to. Today the delegation informed the mediators of our position. We will not accept any withdrawals from what we agreed to on July 2 or any new demands."
He added that "the US administration is sowing false hopes by talking about an agreement that is close, while this is only for election purposes."