Rescheduled Rafah talks in DC could happen as soon as Monday, US officials say
Smoke billows over buildings following Israeli bombardment in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on March 27
(CNN) — High-level talks between US and Israel officials over potential military operations in Rafah could take place in Washington, DC, as soon as Monday, US officials told CNN.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu abruptly called off talks scheduled for this week after the US refused to block a United Nations resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of captives held by Hamas.
The Israeli delegation proposed to reschedule the talks for Monday, officials said, acknowledging the timing is complicated by a Sunday deadline facing the Israeli government to design a new law governing conscription for ultra-Orthodox Jews, long exempted from mandatory military service.
Netanyahu has requested Israel’s top court defer the deadline for his government to draft a new plan, and it remains unclear whether the delegation would be authorized to travel to the United States if those plans are in flux.
US officials have said no date is finalized.
The White House has said it supports the rescheduling of the talks and is working with its counterparts to do so in a timely manner.
“We’re now working with them to find a convenient date that’s obviously going to work for both sides,” press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said earlier in the week.
The-CNN-Wire
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