Two Egyptian security sources told Reuters that Hamas wanted written guarantees from the US for a permanent ceasefire and Israeli withdrawal and had concerns that the current proposal did not provide explicit guarantees over the transition of the first to the second phase.
There have been reports of a split between the group’s political leadership and its more hardline Gaza-based military leadership under Mr Sinwar. Secret messages from Mr Sinwar to his negotiators suggested he was using the mounting Palestinian death toll to his advantage.
“We have the Israelis right where we want them,” Mr Sinwar said in one of dozens of messages to ceasefire negotiators obtained by The Wall Street Journal.
Earlier this week, Mr Blinken said the onus to accept the peace plan was on “one guy” hiding “10 storeys underground in Gaza” to make the casting vote.
The spiralling death toll in Gaza and growing public anger in Israel over the government’s handling of the war are adding to pressure on both sides to reach a deal.
On Wednesday, a United Nations commission investigating the Oct 7 attacks on Israel and the ensuing conflict in Gaza accused both Palestinian armed groups and Israel of committing war crimes.
A panel led by Navi Pillay, the former UN human rights chief, found that Israel’s conduct during the war included crimes against humanity.
The report does not carry any penalties but provides a legal analysis that could feed into future action by the International Court of Justice.