Blinken: possibility remains for agreement on the release of hostages held by Hamas

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken stated on Thursday that reaching an agreement on the release of hostages held by Hamas remains possible. Still, "complicated" issues need to be resolved.

Responding to a question about the possibility of reaching a ceasefire agreement before the start of Ramadan on March 10, Blinken said that Hamas's previous response to a potential agreement included some "clearly unimplementable matters." Still, he indicated the possibility of working towards an agreement.

During a press conference in Albania, Blinken added, "We are currently working with our counterparts from Qatar, Egypt, and Israel on this matter and working very intensively to reach an agreement, and I believe this is possible."

Blinken continued, "There are some very, very difficult issues that need to be resolved. But we are committed to doing everything we can to move forward and explore whether we can reach an agreement."