RIYADH - US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on April 29 that he was hopeful Hamas would accept an “extraordinarily generous” offer to halt Israel’s Gaza offensive in return for the release of hostages.

“Hamas has before it a proposal that is extraordinarily, extraordinarily generous on the part of Israel,” Mr Blinken said in Riyadh at the World Economic Forum.

“The only thing standing between the people of Gaza and a ceasefire is Hamas. They have to decide – and they have to decide quickly,” he said. “I’m hopeful that they will make the right decision.”

A source briefed on the talks said Israel’s proposal entailed a deal to accept the release of fewer than 40 of the roughly 130 hostages believed to be still held in exchange for freeing Palestinians jailed in Israel, and a second phase of a truce consisting of a “period of sustained calm” – Israel’s compromise response to a Hamas demand for a permanent ceasefire.

Mr Blinken arrived in Saudi Arabia on April 29, the first stop in a broader trip to the Middle East to discuss issues including the governance of Gaza once the war with Israel ends.

The top US diplomat heads to Israel later this week, where he is expected to press Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to take the concrete and tangible steps US President Joe Biden had demanded in April to improve the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza.

In Riyadh, Mr Blinken is expected to meet senior Saudi leaders and hold a wider meeting with counterparts from five Arab states – Qatar, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Jordan – to further discussions on what governance of the Gaza Strip would look like after the war, according to a senior State Department official.

Mr Blinken is also expected to bring together Arab countries with the European states and discuss how Europe can help the rebuilding effort of the tiny enclave, which has been reduced to a wasteland in the six-month-long Israeli bombardment.

A group of European nations, including Norway, plans to recognise Palestinian statehood in conjunction with the presentation of an Arab state-backed peace plan to the United Nations.

“We can see, by joining forces, we can make this more meaningful. We really want to recognise the Palestinian state, but we know that is something you do once,” Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide told Reuters.

Mr Blinken’s trip comes as Egypt was expected to host leaders of Islamist group Hamas to discuss prospects for a ceasefire agreement with Israel.

The Palestinian militant group attacked Israel on Oct 7, killing 1,200 people and seizing 253 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.

Israel retaliated by imposing a total siege on Gaza, then launching an air and ground assault that has killed more than 34,000 Palestinians, say the health authorities in Hamas-ruled Gaza.

Conversations over Gaza’s rebuilding and governance have been going on for months, with a clear mechanism yet to emerge.

The United States agrees with Israel’s objective that Hamas needs to be eradicated and can no longer play a role in Gaza’s future, but Washington does not want Israel to reoccupy the strip.

Instead, it has been looking at a structure that will include a reformed Palestinian Authority with support from Arab states.

Mr Blinken will also discuss with Saudi authorities the efforts for a normalisation deal between the kingdom and Israel, a mega deal that includes Washington giving Riyadh agreements on bilateral defence and security commitments as well as nuclear cooperation.

In return for normalisation, the Arab states and Washington push for Israel to agree to a pathway for Palestinian statehood, something Mr Netanyahu has repeatedly rejected.

From Riyadh, Mr Blinken will head to Jordan and Israel, and the focus of the trip will shift to the efforts to improve the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza.

In Amman, Mr Blinken will meet senior Jordanian officials and humanitarian groups to hear about the improvements and what more needs to be done, and then take that feedback to the Israelis later this week.

“(Mr Blinken) will discuss the recent increase in humanitarian assistance being delivered to Gaza and underscore the importance of ensuring that increase is sustained,” the US State Department said in a statement on April 28 announcing the expansion of the trip.

Mr Blinken’s trip to check in on humanitarian aid comes about a month after Mr Biden issued a stark warning to Mr Netanyahu, saying Washington’s policy could shift if Israel fails to take steps to address civilian harm, humanitarian suffering and the safety of aid workers.

In recent weeks, senior US officials have welcomed Israel’s steps to improve the humanitarian situation, but repeatedly said more needs to be done.

In a phone call on April 28 with Mr Netanyahu, Mr Biden mentioned Israel’s preparations to open new border crossings this week into northern Gaza, where the famine risk remains high, according to a White House statement. REUTERS