Hamas that would have paused the war in exchange# for releasing Israeli hostages over the next## few months.

But U.S. Secretary of State Antony# Blinken said there was still room for negotiation.

Nick Schifrin examines the state of diplomacy# and what it means for U.S. efforts in the region.

NICK SCHIFRIN: At a press# conference in Jerusalem today,## Netanyahu reiterated his longstanding g the Israel Defense Forces could achieve that# goal in -- quote -- "a matter of months."

BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, Israeli Prime Minister# (through translator): The continuation of## the mi Surrendering to Hamas' delusional demands# that we heard now not only won't lead to## freeing the captives.

It will just invite# another massacre.

It will invite a major## disaster on the state of Israel that none# of our citizens would want to accept.

NICK SCHIFRIN: The original proposal# called for a six-week pause to release## older women and children first and# then a promise of two more re including soldiers and the bodies# of hostages who died in captivity.

Hamas' counterproposal goes further, demanding# an Israeli withdrawal first from populat areas and then from Gaza completely.

It# also demands reconstruction, more than## 500 humanitarian aid trucks per day, and the# understanding that Hamas would remain in power.

The U.S. has hoped a pause in the war could spark# broader regional diplomatic progress.

Today,## Secretary of State Antony Blinken said# talks over the hostages would continue.

ANTONY BLINKEN, U.S. Secretary of# State: While there are some clear## nonstarters in Hamas' response, NI CK SCHIFRIN: Netanyahu made clear the war would# continue.

He said Israel had so far killed 20,000## Hamas fighters, and the Israeli military operation# would extend into the southern city of Rafah,## where more than half of Gaza's 2.3# million people are now sheltering.

So, where do things stand?

For that, we g prime minister from 2002 to 2005.

He's# now vice president for studies at the## Carnegie Endowment for International# Peace.

And Dennis Ross was a longtime## Middle East peace negotiator for both# Republican and Democratic administrations.## He's now a distinguished fellow at the# Washington Institute for Near East Policy.

Thank you very much, both of you.# Welcome back to the "NewsHour."

Dennis Ross, let me start with# you.

What is your reaction what Prime Minister Netanyahu said in# response to Hamas' DE NNIS ROSS, Former U.S.

Envoy to Middle East:# I think he really had two audiences in mind.

One audience was Yahya Sinwar, who is# th and actually is the person in control in# Gaza.

And the other audience was probably## the right wing of his own coalition, where# he's -- he knows they're threatening to break## the government if he looks like he's prepared# to end the war or give in too much to Hamas.

So I think, for Sinwar, what# he wanted to signal was, look,## you're asking to end the war and you stay in# power?

No way.

Not Netanyahu's way of beginning a readiness# to signal that he's going to negotiate,## but he's going to negotiate hard.

And I would# say the Hamas proposal, counterproposal,## is itself a kind of first counterproposal# designed to produce a negotiation.

I don't think there was any Hamas expectation that# the Israelis would accept something like this.

NICK SCHIFRIN: Marwan Muasher, is# this a signal that Netanyahu is## going to negotiate, even if it is negotiate hard?

MARWAN MUASHER, Former Jordanian Foreign# Minister: Well, look, if Netanyah the war will not end until he kills the Ha why should they agree to release hostages# and then agree to a truce of whatever,## two months, three months, and then# after that they get bombed again?

So, if this is the real position of Mr.# Netanyahu, then I'm afraid that this is## a nonstarter.

Secretary Blinken talked# about the Palestinian position being a## nonstarter.

I see the Israeli one being a# nonstarter if this is the real position.

I think the priority today has to be# an end, a permanent end to the war.## After 27,000 people killed, one cannot keep# talking about truces that are not permanent.

NICK SCHIFRIN: Dennis Ross, is this Netanyahu's# actual position, or is this a public stance?## And does this doom any effort to end# the war in Gaza, even if temporarily?

DENNIS ROSS: Look, I do think# it's a negotiating posture,## but I also think that we really have two --# at this point, two Th e Hamas position, as Marwan just suggested, is,## they want an end to the war and they want to# remain in power.

And the Israeli at the end of the day, Hamas# is not going to be in power.

I do think what the actual position# should be, at least on the Israeli si should be the demilitarization of Gaza# and the certainty that it can't re militarized.

I also think you can say you# can tie reconstruction to demilitarization,## something the Israelis are in the process# of doing.

No one is going to be able to## eliminate Hamas, partly because it's# an idea, partly because it's a pa rtly because in some ways it's embedded, at# least sociologically, psycholo But Hamas not being in power, Hamas being# demilitarized, Gaza being demilitarized,## those are objectives, I think, that could be# achieved.

And I think, if the focus turns to that,## then the gaps between the two sides, which# seem so irreconcilable, might be reachable.

NICK SCHIFRIN: Marwan Muasher, is there a version# of Gaza in the future that has Hamas not in pow MARWAN MUASHER: I don't think Gaza is the endgame,## Nick.

The endgame has to be# the end of the occupation.

If we talk about the package where the# endgame is the end of the occupa and the establishment of a Palestinian# state, a lot of these questions that are## difficult to answer today become easier to# answer.

Are we serious about finally ending## the occupation and establishing a two-state# solution, as the United States says it is?

In the end, Hamas has to become a political# force.

We have seen this with the IRA in## Ireland.

We have seen this in many countries# across the world.

We have seen organizations## that were called terrorists, but that# became political forces in the end.

Look, today, the Palestinian polls are# clear.

Sixty percent of Palestinians in## the West Bank and Gaza want Hamas# to stay in Gaza and rule over Gaza## after the war.

These are numbers that# cannot be ignored.

The question is,## how do we give these people a political horizon,# so that they do not believe in armed resistance,## but they do believe that finally a process# can lead to the end of the occupation?

NICK SCHIFRIN: Dennis Ross, let's use that# occasion to zoom out.

So what the U.S. theory## of the case right now is that a temporary# pause could lead to larger discussions exactly what Marwan Muasher just said, Gaza# reconstruction, the future governance of Gaza,## and then normalization between Israel and# Saudi Arabia, leading to a two-state solution.

Is that the correct approach that# the Biden administration is taking?

DENNIS ROSS: I think it is a logical one,# and I think it could be the right one.

Obviously, it's not just that the devils# are in the details.

The Israeli pu was traumatized by October 7.

They fear, when# you talk about a Palestinian state, t will come to dominate that state, and Hamas, by# definition, doesn't accept the two-state outcome.

And this is not just a recent phenomenon.

This# was the case throughout the 1990s.

Every time we## were making progress, we got a Hamas bomb.# There is an ideology in Hamas that rejects## Israel's existence.

The question is, do you# have a Palestinian national movement that,## in the end, will be dominated by those and who# will demonstrate they're dominated and control## the movement that is prepared to live with# Israel as a nation-state of the Jewish people?

If that becomes very clear, then you# can get a Palestinian state.

You're## not going to have peace until you have an# end of occupation.

But there's got to be## responsibility and accountability on both# sides.

On the Israeli side, they're going## to have to demonstrate they're prepared to# live with an independent Palest But the Palestinians are also going to have to## demonstrate that they re NICK SCHIFRIN: Marwan Muasher, is there# Palestinian leadership that the U.S. and the## region is working on today that could foresee that# future that Dennis Ross just MA RWAN MUASHER: Of course.

Of course.

One of them is in pris NICK SCHIFRIN: Marwan Barghouti, whom Israel tried# and convicted of terrorism charges 20 years ago,## but maintains his political viability and is one# of the most popular Palestinian leaders today.

MARWAN MUASHER: Absolutely.

I Cabinet today that are openly calling for# the expulsion of Palestinians?

Ideologies## exist on both sides.

We need to change the# mind-sets of both Israelis and Palestinians,## who today do not believe there# is a partner on the other side.

And the only way we can change the mind-set# is if we offer a serious process, not an## open-ended process, but a serious process# that ends the occupation.

If we do that,## I believe we can change the mind-set of both# Palestinians and the Israelis.

But, today, we## cannot have the extremist ideologies once again on# both sides dictate the outcome of this conflict.

NICK SCHIFRIN: If I could# ask quickly, both of you,## to turn to an incident this Th e U.S. military has announced that it# took a drone strike the leaders of Kataib Hezbollah, one of the# pro-Iranian militias, in Iraq responsible for## the deaths of three U.S. service members,# U.S. military saying that it killed the## commander -- quote -- "responsible for directly# planning and participating" in that a Dennis Ross first, could this kind of attack## end attacks by pro-Iranian militias on# U.S. service DENNIS ROSS: It's clear that the administration# has made a decision that one of the things it has## to do is that a threshold was crossed# when three Americans were killed.

And then, when that happens, the American# response is going to be disproportionate to## what we saw before.

The U.S. is clearly trying# to change the calculus by showing those are doing this are playing with fire.

Is this# going to be sufficient to do it?

I'm not sure.

NICK SCHIFRIN: Marwan Muasher, does this kind# of strike -- quote -- "change the calculus"?

MARWAN MUASHER: I still think# that both the United States and## Iran are not interested in widening the conflict.

I think that what we have seen so far,# both from Iran and from the United States,## are tactical engagements.

But I do not# think that they are going to amount to## a widening of the conflict.

And# I certainly hope they don't.

NICK SCHIFRIN: Marwan Muasher, Dennis# Ross, thank you very much to yo DENNIS ROSS: Thank you.