By Ahmet Gencturk
ATHENS (AA) – Seventeen countries from around the globe on Thursday reiterated their support for the new roadmap for a cease-fire in Gaza.
“We fully support the movement towards a ceasefire and hostage release deal now on the table and as outlined by President Biden on May 31, 2024. There is no time to lose,” said the leaders of the US, Argentina, Austria, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Colombia, Denmark, France, Germany, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Spain, Thailand, and the UK in a joint statement.
“We call on Hamas to close this agreement, that Israel is ready to move forward with, and begin the process of releasing our citizens,” they added.
They also said: “This agreement would lead to an immediate ceasefire and rehabilitation of Gaza together with security assurances for Israelis, and Palestinians, and opportunities for a more enduring long-term peace and a two-state solution.”
They implored both sides: “At this decisive moment, we call on the leaders of Israel as well as Hamas to make whatever final compromises are necessary to close this deal and bring relief to the families of our hostages, as well as those on both sides of this terrible conflict, including the civilian populations.”
- Biden’s proposal
Last Friday, Biden said Israel presented a three-phase deal that would end hostilities in Gaza and secure the release of hostages held in the coastal enclave. The plan includes a cease-fire, a hostage-prisoner exchange, and the reconstruction of Gaza.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, however, said on Monday that he was “not ready to stop" the war on Gaza, calling Biden's remarks about the cease-fire proposal “inaccurate.”
Indirect talks between Israel and Hamas mediated by the US, Qatar, and Egypt have so far failed to agree on a permanent cease-fire in Gaza.
Israel has continued its brutal offensive on Gaza since an Oct. 7 Hamas attack despite a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire.
Over 36,500 Palestinians have since been killed in Gaza, most of them women and children, and over 83,000 others injured, according to local health authorities.
Nearly eight months into the Israeli war, vast tracts of Gaza lay in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water, and medicine.
Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, whose latest ruling ordered Tel Aviv to immediately halt its operation in the southern city of Rafah, where over a million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.