Israeli officials are weighing an Egyptian proposal for a small-scale cease-fire with Hamas aimed at building momentum for a larger deal, an Israeli official told NBC News, as Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Israel for a renewed diplomatic push.
Israel’s security cabinet has discussed the Egyptian proposal for a two-week truce in Gaza, said the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. The Egyptian proposal calls for the release of just six Israeli hostages in exchange, the official said. It was suggested by Hassan Mahmoud Rashad, the new head of Egyptian intelligence, who took up his post last week.
The proposal was first reported by Axios.
Blinken arrived in Israel early Tuesday as part of a Middle East tour aimed at renewing talks for a comprehensive deal to end the intensifying regional conflict after the death of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar.
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It comes as Israel continues to mount a deadly offensive in northern Gaza, where thousands of people have fled intense Israeli operations in areas like the Jabalia refugee camp in recent days. Israeli forces also continued their invasion of southern Lebanon targeting Hezbollah on Tuesday while striking parts of the country's capital, Beirut, in an assault that sparked the evacuation of a local hospital.
“The thinking is that efforts at a big deal kept meeting challenges. So the idea is to get the momentum going with a smaller deal,” the Israeli official said. The official cautioned that while the proposal has been discussed by Israeli leaders it has not been approved.
It’s also unclear if Hamas would be open to a smaller agreement.
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While the U.S. is hopeful that the killing of the militant group's hardline leader last week could create an opportunity for negotiations, a U.S. official acknowledged that Washington does not know who — if anyone — is currently in charge of Hamas and could negotiate on its behalf.
Asked about the Egyptian proposal, a U.S. official told NBC News: “Who are you going to negotiate with? Hamas has to decide on its next leader.”
Blinken's diplomatic push
A senior State Department official told NBC News, which is traveling with Blinken, that he had five major goals on his trip to the region.
At the top of his list of priorities was discussing with Israel how to bring an end to fighting in Gaza and secure the release of the hostages who remain held there, the official said. Blinken’s immediate focus is also on pressing Israel to get more food and other aid into northern Gaza where there is a growing hunger crisis, the official said.
He will also look to discuss a post-war plan for the Palestinian enclave and to drill down on the humanitarian steps Israel must take to relieve widespread suffering its offensive has caused in Gaza.
Blinken will look to push forward talks on how to secure a diplomatic solution to the fighting in Lebanon and to discuss with Israeli officials their expected response to a strike launched by Iran in retaliation for the assassinations of top Hamas and Hezbollah commanders.
The secretary of state will also discuss the use of an advanced anti-missile system sent by the U.S. to Israel to fortify the country's already robust missile defense program, which was put in place this week.
It comes as the U.S. investigates an apparent leak of top-secret documents showing U.S. spy agencies tracking possible Israeli preparations for the strike against Iran.
Beirut hospital evacuation
As Blinken arrived in Israel, officials at a hospital in Dahieh, a southern suburb of Beirut known as a Hezbollah stronghold, told NBC News they had evacuated the medical facility after Israel claimed a Hezbollah cash bunker was under the site.
The Israeli military alleged that Hezbollah has hundreds of millions of dollars in cash and gold stashed in a bunker built under the Sahel General Hospital, a charge which the facility's director denied.
The Israel Defense Forces said they would not attack the hospital directly, but the medical facility's director, Dr. Fadi Alami, told NBC News that officials still moved to evacuate the hospital.
He said they hoped to be able to return patients to the facility by late Tuesday morning as he dismissed the Israeli military's allegations.
“We completely deny the enemy allegations," he said. "They’re dreaming. This whole thing is theater.”
At least 13 people including a child were killed in an Israeli strike nearby Monday night that also caused damage to the Rafik Hariri University Hospital in southern Beirut, the Lebanese health ministry said. The Israeli military said that overnight it had struck "Hezbollah weapons storage facilities, command centers, and additional terror targets in Beirut."
Raf Sanchez reported from Tel Aviv, and Chantal Da Silva from London.
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