Kirby optimistic about reaching Gaza truce deal before Biden's term ends

Washington, DC — Negotiators are still working on some details that will lead to the finalisation of a ceasefire and prisoner-swap deal between Israel and Hamas, the White House has said.

"We believe we're on the cusp of something," John Kirby told reporters on Tuesday in the US capital in his last press conference as National Security Council spokesperson.

"We believe we're very close, but as we've seen in the past, until you get every detail nailed down, you can't claim success and nothing is negotiated until everything is negotiated and so we're still working through some of the gaps that still remain," he said.

Kirby added, "But we do believe they are closing, so we're very hopeful that we can get this (Gaza truce deal) done before we leave office."

Israel currently holds more than 10,300 Palestinian prisoners, while it is estimated that nearly 100 Israelis are detained in Gaza. Hamas says many Israeli captives have been killed in indiscriminate Israeli air strikes.

In May, 2024, US President Joe Biden announced that Israel had offered a "comprehensive new proposal" that promised a "roadmap to an enduring ceasefire and the release of all hostages."

Back-to-back efforts were repeatedly derailed due to new conditions imposed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The incoming US President Donald Trump, however, appears to have accelerated the negotiation process.

Steve Witkoff, Trump's envoy, reportedly exerted intense pressure on Netanyahu during a tense Saturday meeting, leading to a significant breakthrough.

Kirby says Hamas under pressure to accept deal

Earlier this month, the US President-elect Trump threatened that "all hell will break out in the Middle East" if Hamas does not release the prisoners it is holding in Gaza by the time he is inaugurated on January 20.

Biden administration officials say a deal is around the corner now. However, Netanyahu's far-right coalition partners have threatened to topple his government if he agrees to ending war in Gaza.

Kirby, however, pointed fingers at Hamas for not accepting the deal when President Biden first presented it. He said Hamas is now under tremendous pressure to accept the agreement.

"(Yahya) Sinwar is gone, most of their leaders and fighters are dead or wounded, infrastructure is destroyed, they're under incredible pressure," Kirby added.

He said the Gaza truce deal is now "very close", adding, "We believe that the gaps that remain are of such a nature that there's no reason why they can't closed and finalised."