Blinken accused of giving 'death sentence' to ceasefire negotiations: Report

Quoting sources familiar with ceasefire negotiations, Israeli outlet Yedioth Ahronoth said that chances to reach an agreement are "slim" and that "almost desperate" attempts are being made to save it and hold a summit in Cairo next week.

The sources added that US Secretary of State Antony Blinken "severely sabotaged" chances of holding the Cairo summit after announcing that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had accepted the US's offer and that the ball was in Hamas' court.

Israeli outlets had heavily reported Netanyahu's insistence on keeping a military presence in the Philadelphi corridor between Gaza and Egypt and in the Netzarim corridor in Gaza, considered a "red line" in negotiations.

"He broadcast optimism from intra-American political considerations, so that the Democratic convention in Chicago would go smoothly," a source said, calling the top diplomat's move a "serious foul".

Yedioth Ahronoth said that Blinken gave the "death sentence" to the deal by aligning himself with Netanyahu and giving him a "gift", according to the sources.