U.S. President Joe Biden says the goal of peace in Gaza appears increasingly elusive, despite the White House and key mediators Egypt and Qatar intensifying efforts to push Israel and Hamas toward a cease-fire deal.
“It’s getting harder,” Biden told reporters Tuesday when asked if a cease-fire and hostage release deal is becoming a more distant possibility.
Biden said he expects Iran to hold off its strike if a deal is reached in the next few days.
White House Coordinator for the Middle East Brett McGurk is in Cairo and Doha this week, while Senior Advisor Amos Hochstein is in Beirut, to work diplomatically and militarily to deter further escalation by Iran and its proxy groups and to support border de-escalation in the region, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters Tuesday.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken has postponed his departure to the region, orginally scheduled for Tuesday.
To bolster deterrence the U.S. has deployed additional military assets the Middle East, including squadrons of F-35C and F-22 Raptor jet fighters, the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier, and the USS Georgia submarine.
