Biden: Talks about the hostages are making “real progress,” but Hamas is “in the way” of a deal

US President Joe Biden said Thursday that he believes his government will be able to reach a deal for the hostages, even though Hamas is currently standing in the way of that happening.

In a way, it was the same position the US had taken for months, but Biden hadn’t had anything to say about the talks in a few weeks.

Many times, the first question from the White House press corps was about Israel. This time, Biden was wrapping up a briefing on a totally different subject: the terrible wildfires in Los Angeles.

When asked about the hostage talks, Biden didn’t want to go into too much detail, but he did say, “We’re making some real progress.” He also said that he had talked with US officials earlier Thursday.

“I know that hope lasts forever, but I still think we can have a prisoner exchange.”
The White House has blamed Hamas for the lack of peace in Gaza for more than a year.

Some Egyptian and Qatari diplomats, some members of Israel’s negotiating team, and even some US officials told The Times of Israel that the main problem has been Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s refusal to agree to anything more than a temporary ceasefire. However, Washington has not said that publicly.