US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Saturday welcomed the Israeli rescue operation in which four hostages who had been held by Hamas - Noa Argamani, Almog Meir Jan, Andrey Kozlov, and Shlomi Ziv - were freed from captivity.
In a statement, Blinken also once again called on Hamas to accept the ceasefire and hostage release deal that President Joe Biden recently outlined.
“We welcome the rescue of four hostages who after eight months of captivity have finally been reunited with their families in Israel. The United States will not rest until every hostage is returned home,” the Secretary of State said.
“The proposal that President Biden outlined eight days ago would bring relief to both the people of Gaza and the remaining hostages and their families through an immediate ceasefire that could lead to the release of all hostages, a surge of humanitarian assistance, Gaza’s reconstruction, and an enduring end to the war.”
“The only thing standing in the way of achieving this ceasefire is Hamas. It is time for them to accept the deal,” added Blinken.
According to the proposal outlined by Biden last week, the first phase of the three-phase process would last for six weeks and would include a full and complete ceasefire, withdrawal of Israeli forces from all populated areas of Gaza, and the release of a number of hostages, including women, the elderly, and the wounded, in exchange for the release of hundreds of Palestinian Arab prisoners.
Phase two would see the release of all remaining living hostages, while phase three would encompass "a major reconstruction plan for Gaza," said the President, as well as the repatriation of the remains of deceased hostages to their families.
Blinken is scheduled to visit Israel this week, his eighth visit since Hamas’ October 7 attack on Israel and the war in Gaza which followed, and push the outline presented by Biden.
In addition to Israel, Blinken will also visit Egypt, Jordan and Qatar. The visit will run from Monday through Wednesday, the State Department said.
State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller on Wednesday published a video to his social media account in which he outlined Biden’s three-phase plan and urged Hamas to accept it.
“The only thing standing in between the people of Gaza and an immediate ceasefire is Hamas,” Miller said.
On Thursday, The Wall Street Journal reported that Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar has rejected the Biden administration's ceasefire proposal, vowing that the terrorist organization will keep its weapons.
Later, however, Qatari foreign ministry spokesperson Majed Al-Ansari said that Hamas has not yet handed mediators its response to the latest ceasefire proposal and is still studying it.
On Friday, White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby told reporters that the US is still awaiting an official response by Hamas to the latest ceasefire proposal for the Gaza conflict.
"We are still waiting for an official response from Hamas. We have seen public comments, but we don't take that as official," Kirby said.