A senior US administration official dismissed comments reported by Benjamin Netanyahu, accusing the Israeli prime minister of making “strong statements” that were “not constructive” in securing a ceasefire agreement.
It comes amid a tense round of regional negotiations led by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, as Washington tries to push forward progress on a cease-fire agreement and the release of hostages.
On Monday, Mr Blinken held three-hour talks with the Israeli leader in Jerusalem.
Later he said that Mr. Netanyahu has accepted Washington’s proposal called a “bridge” that aims to try to resolve the sticking points and bring Israel and Hamas closer to an agreement.
According to an Israeli media report, Mr Netanyahu later told a meeting of the families of the hostages that he was “convincing” Mr Blinken that the deal should see Israeli troops occupy areas of Gaza he described as “military and political assets”, including the south. border with Egypt.
The reported comments appear to have angered the American administration.
“We have seen the prime minister’s comments, especially on some of these things,” said the official, who did not want his name to be revealed.
“We won’t discuss it publicly but what I can say is that the only thing that Secretary Blinken and the United States are sure of is the need to get a ceasefire proposal to the end.”
“We fully expect that… if Hamas also accepts this proposal to close the bridge, negotiations will continue on some of the details…
“I would also add that strong statements like these are not conducive to an agreement to end the war and jeopardize the ability to use the level, the level of performance and the technical negotiations to be able to move forward when both sides agree to a proposal to close.”
The senior official’s comments followed talks on Tuesday between Mr Blinken and Egyptian President Adel Fattah al-Sisi in the coastal city of El-Alamein.
Egyptian officials are said to strongly oppose the idea of Israeli troops remaining on the Egyptian border in Gaza.
After his stop in Egypt, Mr Blinken proceeded to Qatar to continue talks in Doha – the last stop on his Middle East tour.
The BBC went with the secretary of state and asked him about the interview just before he left Doha.
He revealed for the first time that the US proposal to close the bridges included a “detailed plan” for the Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.
“The agreement is very clear on the IDF’s plan and positions [Israel Defense Forces] to withdraw from Gaza and Israel has agreed to that,” said Mr. Blinken.
Asked by the BBC if Mr. Netanyahu’s reports that the Israeli leader had “convinced” Mr. Blinken to keep troops in Gaza, he said: “I can’t speak to what he was quoted as saying, I can only speak to what I heard. with him exactly yesterday [Monday] when we spent three hours together,” he said.
“[That included] Israel’s approval of the proposal to close the bridge as well as the detailed plan. And that plan among other things includes a clear plan and places to withdraw money. “
When asked if the proposal was to be “completely withdrawn,” Mr. Blinken said he would not comment on the details of the plan.
Hamas said the latest ceasefire proposals constituted a “coup d’état” against what was agreed in previous talks, and reiterated its desire for a plan to end the violence in Gaza to be based on where talks were held in July rather than new talks.
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