Joe Biden says a deal to end the war in Gaza Strip is in sight

US President acknowledges there remained ‘difficult, complex issues’ between Israel and Hamas.

‘Walking into the deal’: Families of hostages held by Hamas on the road to Jerusalem this week. Picture: AFP

US President Joe Biden says US mediators are making progress in reaching a Gaza ceasefire deal and has called for an end to the Israel-Hamas war.

Mr Biden, in a news conference on Thursday aimed at reassuring doubters about his re-election bid, acknowledged concerns about Israeli actions despite his support for the US ally.

“There’s a lot of things in retrospect I wish I had been able to convince the Israelis to do, but the bottom line is we have a chance now. It’s time to end this war,” he said after a NATO summit in Washington.

Mr Biden acknowledged there remained “difficult, complex issues” between Israel and Hamas.

“There are still gaps to close. We’re making progress,” he said. “The trend is positive, and I’m determined to get this deal done and bring an end to this war, which should end now.”

More than a month ago Mr Biden laid out a plan in which Israel would temporarily halt its offensive in Gaza and Palestinian militants would release hostages, setting the stage for talks for a permanent end to the devastating nine-month war.

Hamas came back with counter-proposals and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has faced pushback from some of his hard-right government allies.

But diplomats have spoken of progress in the latest round of talks that closed on Thursday in Qatar, the key mediator.

Mr Biden threw his support behind Israel after the October 7 attack by Hamas which resulted in the deaths of about 1200 people, mostly civilians.

Israel responded with a military offensive that has killed at least 38,345 people in Gaza, also mostly civilians, according to figures from Hamas-run Gaza health ministry.

Mr Biden, 81, recalled his meeting a half-century ago as a young senator with Israeli prime minister Golda Meir – and acknowledged that times have changed.

“We pushed it really hard, and Israel occasionally was less than co-operative,” he said of Mr Netanyahu’s government.

“This war cabinet is one of the most conservative war cabinets in the history of Israel, and there’s no ultimate answer other than a two-state solution here,” he said.

Mr Biden also stood firm on his decision to hold up delivery of 2000-pound (907kg) bombs, even as his administration moves forward on other munitions. “I’m not providing the 2000-pound bombs. They cannot be used in Gaza or any populated area without causing great human tragedy and damage,” he said.

He again pressed Israel for a “day-after” plan for the war’s end and spoke of his diplomacy to persuade Arab states to help with security. “At the end of the day, there has to be no occupation by Israel in the Gaza Strip,” Mr Biden said.

He also acknowledged he was “disappointed” by the failure of a pier to deliver aid into Gaza, which the US military built at a cost of $US230m. The US plans soon to end the use of the pier permanently after it was plagued by problems, including the weather.

AFP