USA Biden on Gaza: Positive trend in hostage negotiations

US President Joe Biden sees the negotiations between Israel and Hamas on a hostage agreement making progress.

"The trend is positive," said Biden at his closing press conference at the NATO summit in Washington. Both sides had agreed to the plan he had presented. Now it was a matter of working out the details. "These are difficult, complex issues. There are still gaps to be filled," said Biden.

The slow-moving talks are about the exchange of Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails and ways to achieve a lasting ceasefire in the Gaza war.

At the end of May, Biden presented a three-stage plan for this - the USA is one of the mediators alongside Qatar and Egypt. Hamas is calling for Israel to end the war quickly. Israel, on the other hand, wants to keep the option of military intervention in Gaza open even after the hostages have been released.