'Too much at stake' for Israel-Gaza talks to fail, foreign ministers warn as Biden says deal is 'closer than we’ve ever been'

17 August 2024, 16:55 | Updated: 17 August 2024, 16:57

There is 'too much at stake' over the Isreal and Gaza ceasefire negotiations for the 'prospect of peace' to be undermined, foreign ministers have warned in a joint statement.

Talks have been continuing with officials from mediating countries the US, Egypt and Qatar, raising hopes that a deal could be reached.

A statement from the three states said a proposal to bridge the gaps between Israel and Hamas was presented and they expected to work out the details of how to implement a deal next week in Cairo.

Gaza's health ministry said more than 40,000 people have been killed in the region since the conflict broke out.

With the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip continuing to deteriorate, aid and health workers also warned of an outbreak of polio.

Escalating regional tensions are increasing the pressure for a deal amid fears that Iran and Hezbollah militants in Lebanon could attack Israel in retaliation for the killings of Hamas’s political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran.

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British Foreign Secretary David Lammy released a statement in conjunction with his French, German and Italian counterparts on Saturday warning there was "too much at stake" for the peace talks to fail.

The statement read: “We, the foreign ministers of the United Kingdom, France, Germany and Italy, strongly support the ongoing mediation efforts by the United States, Egypt and Qatar to conclude the agreement for a ceasefire and the release of hostages and are encouraged by the constructive approach adopted so far.

“We welcome the fact that technical work will continue over the coming days, including on both the humanitarian provisions and the specific arrangements relating to hostages and detainees, and that senior officials will then reconvene before the end of next week with the aim of concluding the agreement.

“We urge all parties to continue to engage positively and flexibly in this process. We underline the importance of avoiding any escalatory action in the region which would undermine the prospect for peace. There is too much at stake.

”Since Hamas’s attack on Israel on October 7, more than 40,000 Palestinians have been killed, according to Gaza’s health ministry.

US President Joe Biden also said last night that the ceasefire deal is “closer than we’ve ever been”.

Speaking on Friday, President Biden suggested a ceasefire agreement, which would likely include the return of all Israeli hostages captured on October 7, could be on the horizon.

Mr Biden warned an agreement was "not there yet. I don't want to jinx anything... we may have something," Mr Biden told reporters from the White House's Oval Office.

He added: "But we're not there yet.

"It's much, much closer than it was three days ago. So, keep your fingers crossed."

It comes after an Israeli air strike in Gaza early on Saturday morning hit a house and an adjacent warehouse that was sheltering displaced people.

The house was at the entrance of the town of Zawaida, according to the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah, where casualties were taken.

Among those killed was a wholesaler identified as Sami Jawad al-Ejlah, who co-ordinated with the Israeli military to bring meat and fish to Gaza, according to the Associated Press.

The dead also included his two wives, 11 of their children aged two to 22, the children's grandmother, and three other relatives, according to a death list provided by the hospital.

"He was a peaceful man," said Abu Ahmed, a neighbour who was slightly wounded in the attack.

More than 40 civilians were sheltering in the house and warehouse at the time of the strike, he said.

The Israeli military, which rarely comments on individual strikes, said it was checking on the report. It said on Saturday that it was continuing attacks on militants in central Gaza, including one seen launching rockets at troops.