The American President Joe Biden When asked by reporters whether an agreement on a cease-fire in Gaza and the release of Israeli hostages could prevent a possible strike by Iran, he said: “That is my expectation, but we will see.”

For Thursday, at the urging of USAof Qatar and Egypt mediating the war between Israel and Hamas, a crucial round of talks is scheduled in Doha on a possible deal. Unlike Israel, however, the Islamist organization Hamas has so far refused to participate. According to information from the German News Agency, Hamas refuses to take part as long as the fighting lasts. Indirect negotiations, however, will continue even if Hamas does not participate, the Wall Street Journal reports, citing Arab officials. In this case, Hamas will also be informed.

US pressure

A Hamas spokesman from Gaza said, however, that if Israel is serious about wanting to negotiate, then it should first stop its military operations. At the same time, John Kirby, a member of the US National Security Council in Washington, said that tomorrow, Thursday, everyone will have to roll up their sleeves and get to work and added that the US is closely monitoring what Iran is doing, while they do not hide their concern about a possible strike by Tehran on Israel, which would result in their shipwreck the talks on a peace process.

American President Joe Biden, for his part, said: “It will be difficult. We’ll see what Iran does and we’ll see what happens in the event of an attack, but I’m not giving up.”

Billions in arms sales

After the assassination in Tehran of Ismail Haniya, the head of Hamas, and the assassination of Hezbollah’s military commander in Lebanon, the international community is watching if and how Iran will respond, if there will be any retaliation and what they will be.

“Iran and Hezbollah don’t know what to do. There are many plans, but no decision has been made yet,” a US official told the online news site Axios. The US, as Israel’s closest partner, has sent additional military forces to the region with the aim of preventing the escalation of the crisis but also to protect Israelis, as the fear of a generalized war in the Middle East is high.

Meanwhile, the US government has approved major new arms sales to Israel amounting to $20 billion. Among others, 50 F-15 warplanes are included. However, this agreement is long-term and does not directly concern the Israel-Hamas war.

Edited by: Maria Rigoutsou