US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken expressed hope today that Hamas will accept an “extremely generous” offer to end the Israeli offensive on Gaza in exchange for the release of hostages.

“Hamas has one in front of them extremely, extremely generous offer on Israel’s partBlinken said in Riyadh during the World Economic Forum.

“They have to make a decision and they have to make it quickly (…)” and “I hope they make the right decision,” he said, referring to Hamas leaders.

Moreover, Blinken repeated, on the eve of his trip to Israelhis country’s opposition to an Israeli attack on the overcrowded city of Rafah, in the southern part of the Gaza Strip.

“We have yet to see a plan that allows us to believe that civilians can be effectively protected,” Blinken said during a meeting at the World Economic Forum in Riyadh.

The US Secretary of State also estimated that diplomacy prevented the spread of the Israel-Hamas war beyond the Gaza Strip.

“We came very close to an escalation or an extension of the conflict, and I believe that thanks to our very targeted and very determined efforts, we were able to prevent it,” Blinken said.

Regarding the normalization of Israel-Saudi Arabia relations, Anthony Blinken said that the security pact between his country and Riyadh for this normalization is almost complete.

“The work that Saudi Arabia and the United States have done together under their agreements is, I believe, at the point of completion,” he said.

Blinken previously advocated a comprehensive defense of the Gulf Arab states against Iran.

Blinken started in Riyadh on his seventh visit to the Middle East since October 7when Hamas launched a bloody offensive against Israel, leading to war against the Palestinian Islamist movement in the Gaza Strip, causing mounting public pressure for a ceasefire.

It is also Blinken’s first trip to the region since Iran’s mid-April drone and missile attack on Israel.

“This attack has made clear the acute and growing threat posed by Iran, but also the imperative to work together for a comprehensive defense,” Blinken told his Gulf Cooperation Council counterparts, who are meeting in Riyadh.

Hamas: The climate is positive in the first stage

The Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas is expected to give its response today to the proposal for a mutual ceasefire with Israel in the Gaza Stripa Palestinian enclave under siege and facing famine, a deal that also calls for the release of dozens of Israeli hostages.

A tripartite meeting will be held in Cairo Egypt/Qatar/Hamas; the latter’s delegation is expected to be headed by Khalil al-Haya, a member of the movement’s political arm, actively involved in the negotiations, according to an AFP source in Hamas who spoke on condition of anonymity.

“The atmosphere is positive, if we exclude the new obstacles put up by Israel,” he said. “No major problem arose in the comments and requests to be made by Hamas on the content of the proposal” at the meeting, the source added.

This is a proposal drawn up by Cairo and modified by the Israeli government. It is apparently an alternative to that of Hamas, which in mid-April insisted on calling for a permanent cease-fire in the Gaza Strip — a case which the Israeli government refuses to even discuss.

The details of the proposal have not been released. However, according to a report by the US news site Axios, which cited Israeli officials, it includes a willingness to discuss the restoration of “permanent calm” in the Gaza Strip.

The Cairo meeting will come nearly seven months after the outbreak of war, which was triggered by a bloody attack by Hamas’ military wing in southern Israel on October 7.

Egypt, Qatar and the US are trying, so far in vain, to convince the warring sides to stop hostilities.

In late November, a week-long ceasefire allowed the release of 80 hostages held by Hamas and, in exchange, 240 Palestinians held in Israeli prisons.

On both sides, it was mostly women and children.