A senior White House official held a press briefing on Friday night (Israel time) and said that Hamas had tried to smuggle its operatives into Egypt, which delayed the removal of foreign nationals and wounded Palestinians out of Gaza. According to the source, a third of the group that had to go to Egypt were Hamas terrorists in violation of the agreement, and "this was unacceptable to the Egyptians, not to us Americans and not to Israel," he said.
Ambulances at Rafah Crossing (archive), photo: AP
According to the source, there is an "intensive process" underway to release the hostages in Gaza, calling it a "difficult, complex and time-consuming process." The official added that "an active process is taking place in various directions, including indirect involvement in order to find a framework that will lead to the removal of the abductees from Gaza." Referring to the "framework," the source referred to the release of Natalie and Yehudit Ra'anan on October 20 and the intention to examine whether similar actions could be seen, but stressed that removing all the abductees would be "very difficult." The official also said that a significant pause in the fighting would be demanded that could help release the hostages, adding that a "very serious and active" dialogue was taking place on the issue but that no agreement had yet been reached on the issue.
In response to the Hezbollah secretary-general's speech, the official said that he did not intend to comment on the content of the speech, but that the United States continues to be in regular contact with the Lebanese government so that the war does not spread to Lebanon, which would be a complete disaster for the country.
The results of the attack on the compound in the Jabaliya refugee camp. "Collapsed into a compound of tunnels", Photo: AP
Regarding the call for a ceasefire, the official said, "In a situation in which a terrorist organization kidnaps 200 hostages and murders 1,400 people, while its leaders and fighters hide in tunnels, 'ceasefire' is not the expression I would use."
The official also noted that Israel had significantly sharpened its plan of action in Gaza, and that since the beginning of the fighting, the Americans had asked for clarifications on the goals of the war and the ability to achieve them. Regarding the Israeli Air Force attack in Jabalia, which led to harsh images, he said that "the refugee camp collapsed into a compound of tunnels and according to clarifications we received from the Israeli side, a significant number of Hamas leaders, including senior ranks, were in the same compound."
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