Biden’s decision to go ahead with a $1 billion weapons package to Israel was a U-turn driven by pressure from pro-Israel lobbies, hardline Christian groups and criticism from the Republican Party at a crucial time when the “election clock is ticking”, Gershon Baskin, the Middle East director for the International Communities Organization and a former hostage negotiator, says.

Speaking to Al Jazeera from West Jerusalem, Baskin added that Israel appears to be determined to continue its war on Gaza, and its approach to negations with Hamas has “no political end game”.

He said the demands laid out by Hamas and Israel have left an “unbridgeable gap”, with Qatari and Egyptian mediators having “second thoughts” over their ability to mediate.

There is a belief within the Israeli army and the government that only military pressure will bring the release of the captives, he said, adding that the reality over the last seven months has shown military pressure only puts the captives at risk.