Jerusalem: Israel may delay talks with Palestinian movement Hamas on a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip until the US presidential election in November, as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu believes that after the election Washington’s position on Israel and the Gaza conflict may change, Politico reported, citing a senior Middle East diplomat.
“Our assessment is that Netanyahu wants to buy time until the November election,” the diplomat was quoted as saying by the newspaper.
Netanyahu may also delay the talks in an attempt to appease the far-right members of the government or in the belief that Hamas is now too weakened, the report said on Sunday.
At the same time, the Israeli prime minister may believe that after the election, he will be able to avoid the pressure that incumbent US President Joe Biden is putting on him to stop the armed conflict in the Gaza Strip, the report added. In addition, Netanyahu expects that Trump will take a softer stance toward Israel, and a tougher one toward Iran and its proxies, in particular, Lebanese movement Hezbollah.
On Sunday, Netanyahu’s office said that Israeli negotiators will continue discussions with mediators on the Gaza ceasefire deal on Thursday.
