The US special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, responded to a proposal from Hamas, stating that the terrorist organization’s offer was a “non-starter,” adding, “I spent close to seven and a half hours at the Arab Summit, we had really positive conversations there, I would have described it as a ‘game-changer’. We spent a good deal of time speaking about a bridge proposal that would see the release of five live hostages that would have included Eden Alexander. And also see the release of a substantial amount of Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails, which would be a wonderful thing for these Palestinian families.”

“I thought the proposal was compelling, the Israelis were informed about it and advised about it beforehand. After waiting for about two or three days for an answer from Hamas, which is their usual mode, we got a non-acceptable response. I’m not going to go into the specific details of what made it unacceptable, but it was totally unacceptable.”

“I believe they have an opportunity, but it is slipping away quickly. What happened with the Houthis yesterday, what happened with our strike, ought to inform as to where we stand with the regard to terrorism and our tolerance level for terrorist actions – and I would encourage Hamas to get much more sensible”