BEIRUT (AP) — The United States and other mediators are stepping up efforts to stop the wars in Lebanon and the Gaza Strip and are issuing new proposals to end them regional conflict In the final months of the Biden administration.

Negotiations on both fronts has been stopped for months and neither of the warring parties showed any signs of backing down from their demands.

Senior White House officials Brett McGurk and Amos Hochstein met with Israel on Thursday for talks on possible ceasefires in both Lebanon and Gaza and the release of hostages held by Hamas, according to a U.S. official who was not authorized to comment publicly. He will visit. on condition of anonymity. The official also said CIA Director Bill Burns will travel to Egypt on Thursday to discuss those efforts.

The proposal to end the war between Israel and Hezbollah calls for a two-month ceasefire in which Israeli forces would withdraw from Lebanon and end Hezbollah’s armed presence on the country’s southern border, two other officials familiar with the talks said.

But Israel is unlikely to trust UN peacekeepers and Lebanese troops to keep Hezbollah out of the re-established buffer zone in Lebanon. He wants the freedom to attack militants when necessary. Lebanese authorities want complete withdrawal.

The United States, Egypt and Qatar have offered a four-week ceasefire in Gaza under which Hamas would release up to 10 hostages, according to an Egyptian official and a Western diplomat.

But Hamas still appears reluctant to release large numbers of hostages without securing a permanent ceasefire and a complete Israeli withdrawal from Gaza. killing of senior leader Yahya Sinwar. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insisted Israel’s permanent control over parts of the region.

During his visit to Beirut last week, Hochstein met with Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri. Agreed on a roadmap on how to implement UN Security Council resolution 1701The 34-day Israel-Hezbollah war ended in 2006, according to a Lebanese official who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss closed-door talks.

The resolution calls for a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, the withdrawal of Israeli forces from all Lebanese territory, and the withdrawal of all armed forces except UN peacekeepers and the Lebanese army from an area of ​​approximately 30 kilometers (20 miles) south of the Litani River. ) north of the border.

On Wednesday, Hezbollah’s newly elected leader Naim KassemHe said the group “will not beg” for a ceasefire. “If the Israelis decide to stop the attack, we will say we accept that, but on the terms we deem appropriate,” he said in a televised speech.

Israel has not commented publicly on the proposal to end its latest war, which began more than a year ago and intensified dramatically in mid-September.

Conflicting proposals for a ceasefire in Lebanon are being discussed, two US officials say; one of them is an idea calling for an immediate ceasefire, followed by two months for the decision to be fully implemented.

The Lebanese official said that after the ceasefire is achieved, a 60-day period will begin with the withdrawal of Israeli forces and Hezbollah fighters, during which the Lebanese army and the peacekeeping force known as UNIFIL will be deployed in the border region.

The Lebanese official said the road map includes increasing the number of UN peacekeepers from 10,000 to 15,000 and increasing the number of Lebanese troops south of the Litani from 4,000 to 15,000.

Resolution 1701 also called for “the disarmament of all armed groups in Lebanon,” including Hezbollah, but this is not part of the first phase of implementation under the current proposal.

Another official familiar with the talks said Israel wants any agreement to include measures to prevent Hezbollah from rearming and to ensure that Israel can operate in the buffer zone to combat threats from the militant group.

It is unclear whether Lebanon would accept an agreement allowing Israel to continue military operations on Lebanese territory. Lebanese officials insisted that no changes should be made to resolution 1701, which stipulates Israel’s complete withdrawal.

Hezbollah said it would not stop rocket attacks against Israel unless a ceasefire is reached in Gaza. It is unclear whether this attitude has changed It follows the killing of Hezbollah’s long-time leader Hassan Nasrallah and several other top commanders in Israeli airstrikes last month.

The United States, Egypt and Qatar have proposed a four-week ceasefire in Gaza in which eight to 10 hostages would be released, according to a senior Egyptian official.

The official said that within the scope of the plan, humanitarian aid to Gaza will be increased, but there will be no guarantee of permanent ceasefire talks in the future.

In the October 7 attack that triggered the war, Hamas-led militants killed approximately 1,200 people and kidnapped around 250 people. More than 43,000 Palestinians were killed in Israel’s retaliatory attack, according to local health authorities. Authorities do not say how many are combatants, but say more than half are women and children.

Nearly 100 hostages are still being held in Gaza, and about a third of them are believed to be dead.

The latest proposal is based on the initiative of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi, who last week offered a two-day ceasefire in exchange for the release of four hostages.

Netanyahu, who said that he was always open to temporary ceasefires regarding the release of hostages, said in his statement that he had not received an official offer from Egypt’s initiative, but that he would “accept it immediately.”

Hamas said it was open to discussing alternative proposals but stood by its demands for a permanent ceasefire, an Israeli withdrawal and the release of Palestinian prisoners.

The Egyptian official said mediators were not optimistic.

A Western diplomat in Cairo confirmed that their government had been briefed on the offer, saying it was being pursued in parallel with ceasefire efforts in Lebanon. Both officials in Egypt spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the talks publicly.

___

Frankel was reporting from Jerusalem and Magdy was reporting from Cairo. Associated Press writers Aamer Madhani and Matthew Lee in Washington contributed.

___

Follow AP’s war coverage at: