TEL-AVIV: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who is visiting Israel to push for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, said on Monday that the ongoing talks were “perhaps the last” chance to reach an agreement to end the war between Hamas and Israel.

“This is a crucial moment – perhaps the best, perhaps the last chance to bring the hostages home, to achieve a ceasefire and to put everyone on a better path to lasting security and peace,” the top US diplomat said as he met with the Israeli president during his ninth visit to the region since the war between Hamas and Israel broke out in October.

His comments come after US President Joe Biden said a ceasefire in Gaza remained possible despite Hamas and Israel blaming each other. Biden told reporters after his weekend at his Camp David retreat that those talks were still ongoing and that “we are not giving up,” adding that a deal was “still possible.”

Mediators from Qatar, Egypt and the United States reported progress in talks on a ceasefire in Gaza. A U.S. official said that while remaining differences were “bridgeable,” the current situation remained fraught with challenges.

Hamas has said that a new proposal aimed at bridging the differences between Hamas and Israel over a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip is too similar to the Israeli prime minister’s recent positions.