Hope The Gaza Armistice Agreement Is Achieved Soon, US Secretary Of State: We Will Do Everything We Can

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken. (Twitter/@SecBlinken)

JAKARTA - United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the ceasefire agreement of the conflict in the Gaza Strip, Palestine must be reached in the next few days, adding that together with Egypt and Qatar, his country will do everything it can to invite Hamas to join the "linker proposal".

He said in Doha, Qatar, the last destination of his ninth visit to the Middle East since the latest conflict broke out on October 7, 2023, after visiting Israel and Egypt earlier on a trip that began Saturday night last week.

He said that after Hamas approved a proposal submitted by Washington to address dissent blocking the ceasefire agreement, they should also get an agreement on details of its implementation.

The US, Foreign Minister Blinken said, had long said they had not received a long-term occupation of Gaza by Israel.

"Time is the most important thing," he said, launching The Times of Israel August 21.

"This must be resolved, and must be completed in the next few days, and we will do everything we can to solve it," he said.

Citing the US State Department website, Foreign Minister Blinken's trip this time was said to continue intensive diplomatic efforts, to reach a ceasefire agreement and release of hostages and detainees through a liaison proposal presented today by the United States, with support from Egypt and Qatar.

The proposal will reach a ceasefire in Gaza, guarantee the release of all hostages, ensure humanitarian aid is distributed throughout Gaza and create conditions for wider regional stability.

A senior Biden administration official traveling with Blinken said the US expects ceasefire talks to continue this week, as reported by Reuters.

"The United States does not accept any long-term occupation of Gaza by Israel," Foreign Minister Blinken said, when asked about the withdrawal of Israeli troops within the framework of the ceasefire, as well as about Axios' report citing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu who said he might have convinced Foreign Minister Blinken Israel should maintain troops in the Philadelphia Corridor between Egypt and Gaza.

"More specifically, the agreement is very clear about the schedule and location of the withdrawal (Israel Defense Forces) from Gaza and Israel has agreed. So, as far as I know, that's very clear to me," he said.

It is known that both Hamas and Egypt opposed the deployment of Israeli troops in the Philadelphia Corridor, but PM Netanyahu insisted it was necessary to stop the smuggling of weapons into Gaza.

Separately, Egyptian security sources said the US had proposed an international presence in the Philadelphia Corridor area, a proposal that Cairo said the source could accept if it was limited to a maximum of six months.