News - Blinken calls on Israel, Hamas for ‘maximum flexibility’ in negotiations

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday called for both Israel and Hamas to demonstrate “maximum flexibility” in talks on a hostage-ceasefire deal, reports The Times of Israel. An American official said “maximalist” remarks attributed to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about maintaining control of the Gaza-Egypt border were not helpful to reaching an agreement. This came after Netanyahu reportedly told hardline relatives of hostages and bereaved families that “Israel won’t leave the Philadelphi Corridor and the Netzarim Corridor under any circumstances.” Netanyahu has insisted that Israel will not withdraw from those two areas in southern and central Gaza, respectively, and that troops must be stationed there for strategic and security reasons. The Philadelphi Corridor runs along the Gaza-Egypt border, where Hamas for years smuggled in arms and weapons components. The Netzarim Corridor was carved out by the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) during the war, and aims to prevent armed Hamas fighters from returning to northern Gaza Earlier this week, Israeli negotiators were said to have told the prime minister that his demand for an ongoing IDF presence on the Philadelphi Corridor was dooming the deal. “Maximalist statements like this are not constructive to getting a ceasefire deal across the finish line,” said the aforementioned official, who also denied an Axios report that said Netanyahu might have managed to convince the top US diplomat on the issue.