White House silent on Hamas ceasefire to protect the process

The White House confirmed that Hamas had submitted a positive ceasefire response on Monday but declined to discuss the parameters or say if it was the proposal put forth by the United States, Israel, and other regional allies.

The terrorist group responsible for the Oct. 7 attacks in Israel said Monday afternoon that it had accepted a three-tiered ceasefire proposal that would allow for hostages held by Hamas and Palestinians arrested by Israeli forces to be released.

However, Israeli officials said in public statements that the proposal Hamas accepted was a watered-down version and would not be accepted by the Israeli government.

National Security Council spokesman John Kirby fielded numerous questions on the subject from reporters during Monday’s White House press briefing but repeatedly declined to engage on questioning.

“I won’t be able to comment any further on this until we know where things stand. I hope you can understand that. I know everybody’s curious about what’s in this response,” he said. “We want to get these hostages out. We want to get a ceasefire in place for six weeks. We want to increase humanitarian assistance, and the last thing that I want to do is say anything at this podium that’s going to put that process at risk.”

President Joe Biden spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday morning, but Kirby said Monday that the two leaders did not discuss the specific proposal agreed to by Hamas.

“We were waiting on word. We had hoped that there would be word very, very soon, and we certainly hoped it would be would today,” he said, adding that the U.S. will continue to push for a ceasefire and the release of the remaining hostages. “Time is of the essence here.”

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You can watch Monday’s briefing in full below.