US 'reviewing' Hamas' cease-fire response with partners in region

By Iclal Turan

WASHINGTON (AA) – Following Hamas’ announcement that it had agreed to a cease-fire deal for Gaza, the US said on Monday it had received Hamas' response to the deal and is reviewing it with its regional partners.

“I can confirm that Hamas has issued a response. We are reviewing that response now and discussing it with our partners in the region,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told reporters.

Noting that CIA Director Bill Burns remains in the region to work on reaching a deal, Miller said: “We will be discussing this response with our partners over the coming hours.”

“We continue to believe that a hostage deal is in the best interests of the Israeli people, it's in the best interest of the Palestinian people. It would bring an immediate cease-fire, it would allow increased movement of humanitarian assistance, and so we're going to continue to work to try to reach an agreement,” he added.

Hamas said in a statement on Monday that it has agreed to a proposed cease-fire in the Gaza Strip, and its chief Ismail Haniyeh conveyed his group’s approval of the proposal during phone calls with Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani and Egyptian intelligence chief Abbas Kamel.

The approval came in the wake of Israeli forces issuing evacuation orders for Palestinians in eastern Rafah, a city in southern Gaza, a step widely seen as a prelude to Israel's long-threatened attack on the city, home to some 1.5 million Palestinians seeking refuge from the war.