Disagreement Over Philadelphi Corridor Threatens Israel-Hamas Truce

Both Israel and Hamas need to urgently resolve their remaining issues and finalize a Gaza truce, as most of the deal is already agreed upon, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Thursday.

Speaking at a news conference during a visit to Haiti, Blinken stated that "based on what I've seen, 90% is agreed, but there are a few critical issues that remain where we need to be able to get agreement." He stressed that "it's really incumbent on both parties to get to yes on these remaining issues."

Blinken cautioned that every day the deal is not finalized, and the two sides don't say "yes, period," is a day "in which something else happens and there is an intervening event which simply pushes things off and runs the risk of derailing what is a pretty fragile apple cart."

However, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has denied Blinken's claims, calling them "exactly inaccurate." Netanyahu told Fox News on Thursday that "there's not a deal in the making," and said, "unfortunately, it's not close."

The Israeli prime minister has vowed not to remove Israeli troops from the strategic 14km strip of land along the Gaza-Egypt border, known as the Philadelphi Corridor, arguing that an Israeli military presence there is vital to ensure victory over Hamas. The Palestinian militant group has vehemently rejected any continued Israeli presence in the corridor, and this has become one of the key obstacles to finalizing a ceasefire in Gaza.

Hostilities between Israel and Hamas flared up when the Palestinian militant group attacked southern Israel on October 7, killing around 1,100 people and taking more than 200 others hostage. Israel's massive military retaliation has reportedly claimed the lives of over 40,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to Palestinian health officials.