US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that the United States is currently waiting for Hamas's approval of the recent ceasefire and prisoner exchange proposal.

“Taking the ceasefire should be a no-brainer,” Blinken said in response that Hamas represents the will of the Palestinian people.

“But maybe something else is going on, and we’ll have a better picture of that in the coming days,” he adds, after just concluding a regional tour that aimed to push for a ceasefire deal.

“We wait to see whether, in effect, they can take yes for an answer on the ceasefire and release of hostages,” Blinken says at the McCain Institute’s Sedona Forum in Arizona.

Blinken claimed that “the only thing standing between the people of Gaza and a ceasefire is Hamas.”

He reiterated the US administration’s stance on the necessity for the Israeli Occupation to provide a clear plan to protect and evacuate civilians before invading the southern border city of Rafah - which currently houses an overwhelming percentage of Gaza's 2.2 million displaced population.

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Earlier today, reports emerged that Hamas’ leadership has agreed to implement the first phase of the proposed ceasefire and prisoner exchange deal, after the United States pledged through mediators -Egypt and Qatar- that the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) would withdraw completely from the Gaza Strip and stop its aggression - according to a senior Hamas source cited by Hebrew Channel 12.

It added that the CIA Director William J. Burns will return to Cairo to oversee and finalize the last remaining details of the agreement. A Hamas delegation led by Khalil Al-Hayya will also travel to Cairo and arrive today in addition to an “Israeli” delegation.

According to Channel 12, the United States committed to Hamas and mediators that “Israel” will not invade Rafah at any point from now.

However, there are other points of contention in the deal yet to be agreed upon, particularly regarding the entry of dual-use materials into the Strip – which are items that can be both used for civilian and military applications.

The Hamas source added that stipulations regarding dual-use materials are close to being finalized, adding that Hamas made it clear compromises were reached regarding the number of Palestinian prisoners who will be released in exchange for each “Israeli” captive.

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