Gaza ceasefire deal is closer: Biden

“I don’t want to jinx anything… we may have something. But we’re not there yet,” Biden told reporters in the White House’s Oval Office.

“It’s much, much closer than it was three days ago. So, keep your fingers crossed”, warning all sides not to undermine endeavours for a ceasefire in Gaza.

He told reporters that although he’s “optimistic” about the prospect of a deal being agreed on, nothing is guaranteed.

“As of an hour ago, it’s still in play. I’m optimistic. It’s far from over,” the president continued, adding, “There’s a couple more issues. I think we’ve got a shot.”

When asked when the ceasefire would start if agreed to, Biden stressed: “That remains to be seen.”

Gaza ceasefire negotiations in Doha paused on Friday with negotiators to meet again next week seeking an agreement to end the war in the blockaded territory.

In a joint statement, the US, Qatar and Egypt announced Washington had presented a new proposal that built on points of agreement over the past week, closing gaps in a way that could allow rapid implementation of a deal.

Mediators would keep working on the proposal in coming days, they added.

The current round of talks started on Thursday amid growing fears of a regional war after Israel killed a top Hezbollah commander in Beirut and Hamas’s political chief Ismail Haniyeh was assassinated in Tehran.

The White House has also announced that Biden held separate phone calls with Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi to “review the significant progress” in the ceasefire talks.

The US State Department also said Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel to Israel on Saturday to “continue intensive diplomatic efforts to conclude the agreement”.

“Secretary Blinken will underscore the critical need for all parties in the region to avoid escalation or any other actions that could undermine the ability to finalize an agreement,” the department added.

Biden announced in a statement on Friday that Blinken was travelling to the Middle East in part “to stress that with the comprehensive ceasefire and hostage release agreement now in sight, no one in the region should take actions to undermine this process”.

The overall death toll from the Israeli campaign of death, destruction and genocide in Gaza has surpassed the grim milestone of 40,000, the Gaza Health Ministry announced on Thursday.