United States Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff said on Sunday that Hamas' offer to release one US hostage soldier and return four bodies of slain captives is "unacceptable."
"The Hamas proposal is a non-starter," Witkoff stated in an interview with CNN, confirming for the first time that he presented to Israel and Hamas a "bridge proposal" that includes the release of five living Israeli hostages in exchange for "a substantial amount of Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails, which would be a wonderful thing for these Palestinian families."
Furthermore, he said he "would encourage Hamas to get much more sensible than how they have been," stressing that yesterday's US strikes on Houthi targets in Yemen should show Hamas "where we stand with regard to terrorism and our tolerance level for terrorist actions."
