WASHINGTON, July 12, 2024 (BSS/AFP) - President Joe Biden said Thursday that US mediators were making progress in reaching a Gaza ceasefire deal as he called for an end to the Israel-Hamas war.

Biden, in a high-stakes, nearly hour-long news conference aimed at repudiating doubters of his reelection bid, acknowledged concerns about Israeli actions despite his overall support for the US ally.

"There's a lot of things in retrospect I wish I had been able to convince the Israelis to do, but the bottom line is we have a chance now. It's time to end this war," he said after a NATO summit in Washington.

Biden acknowledged there remained "difficult, complex issues" between Israel and Hamas.

"There are still gaps to close. We're making progress," Biden said.

"The trend is positive, and I'm determined to get this deal done and bring an end to this war, which should end now," he said.

Biden more than a month ago laid out a plan in which Israel would temporarily halt its offensive in Gaza and Palestinian militants would release hostages, setting the stage for talks for a permanent end to the devastating nine-month war.

Hamas came back with counterproposals and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has faced pushback from some of his hard-right government allies.

But diplomats have spoken of progress in the latest round of talks that closed Thursday in Qatar, the key mediator.

- Pushing Israel 'really hard' –

Biden threw his support behind Israel after the October 7 attack by Hamas which resulted in the deaths of 1,195 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli figures.

Israel responded with a military offensive that has killed at least 38,345 people in Gaza, also mostly civilians, according to figures from Hamas-run Gaza health ministry.

Biden, 81, recalled his meeting a half-century ago as a young senator with Israeli prime minister Golda Meir -- and acknowledged that times have changed.

"We pushed it really hard, and Israel occasionally was less than cooperative," Biden said of Netanyahu's government.

"This war cabinet is one of the most conservative war cabinets in the history of Israel, and there's no ultimate answer other than a two-state solution here," he said.

Biden also stood firm on his decision to hold up delivery of massive 2,000-pound bombs, even as his administration moves forward on other munitions.

"I'm not providing the 2,000-pound bombs. They cannot be used in Gaza or any populated area without causing great human tragedy and damage," Biden said.

He again pressed Israel for a "day-after" plan for the war's end and spoke of his diplomacy to persuade Arab states to help with security.

"At the end of the day, there has to be no occupation by Israel in the Gaza Strip," Biden said.

He also acknowledged he was "disappointed" by a pier to deliver aid into Gaza, which Biden announced in March and the US military built at a cost of $230 million as Israel impeded land routes for aid trucks.
The United States plans soon to end the use of the pier permanently after it was plagued by problems, including the weather.

"I was hopeful that would be more successful," Biden said.