Why Blinken is optimistic after Israel OKs cease-fire plan | DW News

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken says Israel has accepted a proposal to bridge differences that are holding up a cease-fire and hostage release in Gaza. He made the announcement after meetings with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Isaac Herzog in Israel. Blinken says it's now up to Hamas -- whose terrorist attack on October 7 started the current war -- to agree to the plan - but it’s unclear if the new proposal addresses any of the militant group's concerns. We spoke to Gerald Feierstein, Director of the Arabian Peninsula Affairs Program at the Middle East Institute in Washington, D.C., and Michael Singh from the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.

00:00 Intro and report
03:24 Interview Gerald Feierstein, Middle East Institute
06:52 Interview Michael Singh, Washington Institute for Near East Policy