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US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said there's a "distinct possibility" that Israel and Hamas will be able to reach a ceasefire deal before President Joe Biden leaves office in a week.
"The pressure is building for Hamas to come to yes," Sullivan said in an interview at Bloomberg's Washington bureau on Monday. "It's there for the taking so the question is now can we all collectively seize the moment and make this happen."
Sullivan said Biden's Middle East envoy, Brett McGurk, had been in the region for more than a week working out the details of an agreement. He said he'd spoken with Qatar's prime minister as well as Israeli officials and "there is a general sense that this is moving in the right direction."
The Biden administration has tried to work closely with President-elect Donald Trump's team on the issue. Sullivan suggested that Trump's demand for a deal before he takes office hasn't hurt the talks.
"The pressure building here toward the end of President Biden's term has been considerable," Sullivan said. "That will help contribute to a positive outcome if we can generate that final yes from both sides.
Sullivan said he wasn't ready to make any promises to get a deal that would end the fighting that began with Hamas's attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.
"We've been here before, we've been close before and haven't gotten across the finish line," Sullivan said.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by News Agency staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)