US says 鈥榖ridge proposal鈥� on table for Gaza ceasefire but window 鈥榗losing fast鈥�

Palestinians transport casualties following an Israeli strike, in Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip Mar. 19, 2025. (Reuters)
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  • A State Department spokesperson said the proposal would also 鈥渟ee the release of five live hostages, including American Edan Alexander鈥�
  • 鈥淭he opportunity is still there, but it鈥檚 closing fast鈥�

WASHINGTON: The US State Department said on Wednesday there was still a bridge proposal that would extend the ceasefire鈥� in Gaza but the opportunity for it was 鈥渃losing fast.鈥�
A State Department spokesperson said the proposal would also 鈥渟ee the release of five live hostages, including American Edan Alexander. It would also see the release of a substantial number of Palestinians held in Israeli jails.鈥�
鈥淭he opportunity is still there, but it鈥檚 closing fast.鈥�
The Israeli military said on Wednesday its forces have resumed ground operations in Gaza as a second day of airstrikes killed at least 48 Palestinians, according to local health workers. A day earlier, more than 400 Palestinians were killed in Israeli airstrikes in one of the deadliest episodes since the beginning of Israel鈥檚 war in Gaza in October 2023.
This shattered nearly two months of relative calm since a ceasefire went into effect between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas, which controls Gaza.
The State Department spokesperson said the proposal was 鈥渃ompelling鈥� and that Washington stood with Israel.
The latest bloodshed in the decades-old Israeli-Palestinian conflict was triggered on October 7, 2023, when Palestinian Hamas militants attacked Israel, killing 1,200 and taking about 250 hostages, according to Israeli allies.
Israel鈥檚 subsequent military assault on Gaza has killed over 49,000 Palestinians, according to the local health ministry, while also triggering accusations of genocide and war crimes that Israel denies. The assault has internally displaced nearly Gaza鈥檚 entire 2.3 million population and caused a hunger crisis.