President Biden asked Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu during their call on Wednesday to agree to pull Israeli forces back from part of the Egypt-Gaza border during the first phase of the hostage-release and ceasefire in Gaza deal so negotiations on the deal can move forward, three Israeli officials said.
Why it matters: Netanyahu's demand that the IDF continue to be deployed along the Philadelphi corridor on the border of Egypt and Gaza during the first phase of the deal has become one of the main — and final — points of contention on the way to an agreement.
The Israeli officials said Netanyahu partially accepted Biden's request and agreed to give up one Israeli position along the border.
Behind the scenes: ...The Israeli officials said Biden asked for Israeli forces to be pulled out from a 1- to 2-kilometer strip along the Egypt-Gaza border.
The area is close to the Rafah coast and adjacent to the Tel al-Sultan neighborhood, where a large number of displaced Palestinians are sheltering.
The Israeli officials said Biden told Netanyahu that agreeing to this may contribute to advancing the negotiations towards a deal.
Netanyahu's partial agreement resulted in the U.S. supporting the Israeli position that other IDF forces remain along the Philadelphi corridor in the first phase of the deal, an Israeli official said.
The Israeli official said that after the U.S. backed Israel's position, Egypt then had to agree to deliver the proposed maps with the updated IDF deployment to Hamas.
Israeli officials said they don't think Hamas will agree to the new maps with a slightly reduced IDF deployment.
What they're saying: A Netanyahu aide said the prime minister agreed to change the location of one IDF position and move it by only a few hundred meters, "in a way that does not harm operational control" along the Philadelphi corridor.
"The IDF is deployed all along the Philadelphi corrdior. The prime minister stands by the principle that this situation will continue," the aide said....
...Zoom in: During the talks in Cairo on Thursday, Israel and Egypt narrowed the gaps between them regarding the deployment of IDF forces along the Philadelphi corridor, a senior Israeli official said.
The Egyptians strongly opposed the continued deployment of IDF forces along the border. The issue has been a sticking point for Egypt that has prevented further negotiations with Hamas on the hostage and ceasefire deal.
🔗SOURCE ➡️ Axios
Related: 8/20 — Barak Ravid: Blinken's Statement Baffled Some Israeli Officials Who Told Me That Netanyahu's Hard Lines Are Actually Making A Deal Much Harder To Reach
The U.S. Is Lying About The Gaza Ceasefire Again:
TheMcgwire: Blinken is lying, Hamas isn't in the way of a deal, Netanyahu is
8/20 - "Israel won't leave the philadelphi corridor & the netzarim corridor regardless of the pressure to do so ... i told this to blinken. maybe i convinced him," Said Benjamin Netanyahu During A Meeting With The Families Of Israeli Captives, According To Barak Ravid.
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Netanyahu still won't sign it.
He's plunging the entire region into full on war just to evade justice.
8/14 — Documents Confirm Israeli PM Responsible For Obstructing Gaza Ceasefire: Report
..Netanyahu has added new conditions to Israel’s demands in ceasefire talks, which threaten to further upend the negotiations.
6/6 - Was October 7th Allowed to Happen To Further The Greater Israel Agenda? Did The Hannibal Directive Ever End? [X]— Part 4 of TheMcgwire's Oct 7th Series
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