US President Joe Biden speaks to the media after the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago, Illinois, US August 20, 2024. REUTERS/Craig Hudson

US President Joe Biden said Tuesday that Hamas was “backing away” from a deal with Israel to agree on a ceasefire in the war in Gaza. “It’s still in play, but you can’t predict,” he said as he prepared to leave Chicago after a keynote address to the Democratic National Convention. “Israel says they can work it out... Hamas is now backing away.” The United States, Egypt and Qatar are trying to mediate a cease-fire agreement between Israel and Hamas. Israel and Hamas have blamed each other for delays in reaching an accord that diplomats say would help avert a wider conflagration in the Middle East that could draw in Iran and Hezbollah in Lebanon. 

The Biden administration is under domestic pressure over Gaza, with pro-Palestinian protests taking place outside the Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Monday. The October 7 attack on southern Israel resulted in the deaths of 1,198 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures. Israel's retaliatory offensive in Gaza has killed at least 40,139 people, according to the territory's health ministry, which does not give details of civilian and militant deaths. 

Out of 251 hostages seized during Hamas's attack, 111 are still held in Gaza, including 39 the military says are dead. The Biden framework would freeze fighting for an initial six weeks while Israeli hostages are exchanged for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails and humanitarian aid enters Gaza.