US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has called on Hamas to accept a “very strong” ceasefire-for-hostages offer as he vowed to put a priority on families seeking to reunite with loved ones, AFP reports.

In rare scenes for the top US diplomat, who has faced furore at home and abroad over President Joe Biden’s support for Israel in its campaign against Hamas, Blinken was greeted outside his Tel Aviv hotel by Israelis waving US flags and chanting, “Thank you, Biden! Thank you, Blinken!”

Blinken, who also met privately with hostage families, told them that freeing the hostages seized on October 7 was “at the heart of everything we’re trying to do”.

“There is a very strong proposal on the table right now. Hamas needs to say yes, and needs to get this done,” Blinken told the protesters, many of whom chanted for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to halt the fighting.

“We will not rest until everyone — men, women, soldier, civilian, young, old — is back home,” he said.