Hamas Rejects Ceasefire Proposal, US Not Briefed On Israel Rafah Plan

Wires reporting that Hamas has rejected the ceasefire proposal submitted by Israel today, per Hamas official Ali Baraka.

• White House spokesperson John Kirby told reporters a few hours ago that he expected Hamas could take several days to respond to the proposal, negotiated in Cairo over the weekend.
• Since Kirby's comments, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivered a video address revealing that a date has been set for a ground invasion of Rafah, but declined to disclose the date. The timing of Netanyahu's video statement is likely to have influenced Hamas' decision and may significantly impact the prospect of a ceasefire agreement being reached in the short-term.
• US State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters moments ago that, "to his knowledge," the US has not been briefing on the Israeli Rafah operation.
• Miller restates that the US has not yet seen a "credible plan" for how Israel intends to ensure civilian safety during an invasion of Rafah: "We think a full scale military invasion of Rafah would have an enormously harmful effect on civilians and ultimately hurt Israel's security."