Reports started to surface several days ago that the Biden administration had submitted a ceasefire proposal to Israel to bring the war with Hamas to a close.
Now, reports are breaking that the agreement was “virtually identical” to Hamas' proposals.
Talking Points…
- Biden pressuring Israel for cease-fire
- Biden proposals almost identical to Hamas proposals
- Analysis
For weeks now, Joe Biden has been squeezing Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu to enter into a cease-fire agreement with Hamas. At one point, it was revealed that Biden was threatening to hold back aid that Congress had already approved to force Netanyahu’s hand, but that has not worked.
Biden then started to change gears to put more public pressure on Israel, saying that Hamas had been depleted and no longer had the ability to pose a threat to Israel, but Israel vehemently disagreed with that statement. Netanyahu insisted that there would not be a cease-fire until “the destruction of Hamas’ military and governing capabilities, the freeing of all hostages and ensuring that Gaza no longer poses a threat to Israel.” He added:
“Hamas has to be eliminated, not as an idea.
“Nazism was not destroyed as an idea in World World II, but Nazis don’t govern Germany.”
Even with that rejection, Biden has continued to work the back channels, knowing full well that if this conflict drags into the election, it would likely cost him votes in battleground states that could easily hand this election to Trump.
This week, some rather disturbing reports surfaced about the ceasefire proposals that Biden has been putting in front of Israel. It appears that Biden has more or less taken the proposals that Hamas sent, put them on White House letterhead, and forwarded them to Netanyahu.
This was confirmed on Friday by State Department Spokesman Matthew Miller. Miller confirmed the three-point plan that Biden submitted was “virtually identical” to what Hamas had proposed. The proposal appeared to require Israel to make all the moves without any concessions from Hamas. For instance, Israel would have to withdraw from Gaza without requiring the return of the hostages or the disarmament of Hamas.
Biden’s plan called for an immediate six-week ceasefire, with some hostages being freed. Ongoing negotiations for a permanent ceasefire would extend the six-week ceasefire as long as those talks were taking place (all hostages would be freed if talks were successful). It would require a major reconstruction project in Gaza, at which time the remains of dead hostages would be returned.
The White House has tried to push this deal as originating from Israel, but Israeli officials have denied that is the case. Netanyahu came a hair shy of accusing Biden of lying about the deal, adding that the deal Biden presented was only a “partial” deal and that Israel would not accept any deal that did not include Israel’s ability to destroy Hamas, something that Hamas has obviously rejected in the past. Israel responded to these reports, stating:
“Israel’s conditions for ending the war have not changed: the destruction of Hamas’ military and governing capabilities, the freeing of all hostages and ensuring that Gaza no longer poses a threat to Israel.
“Under the proposal, Israel will continue to insist these conditions are met before a permanent ceasefire is put in place.”
To me, any deal that does not allow Israel to destroy Hamas is unacceptable. While Hamas is decimated, Israel must be permitted to finish the job. Secondly, why in the world does Biden think he can lie about something like this and that Israel would not call him out for it? We know the man is a serial liar, but this is getting out of control. This is not a story about him riding on trains but a major foreign policy issue where the facts are going to be well documented.
I truly feel for the hostages and their families, but at the same time, Hamas must be held accountable, and it must not be permitted to survive, recover, and attack again. Israel must be permitted to finish this how it sees fit.
