Biden suggests Gaza cease-fire could take hold by next week

President Joe Biden on Monday evening said he thought a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas could be in place in roughly a week.

“I hope by the end of the weekend,” Biden told reporters who asked about the time frame. He spoke while visiting a midtown Manhattan ice cream shop with NBC’s Seth Meyers after taping an appearance on his late night show.

“My national security adviser tells me that we’re close, we’re close, we’re not done yet,” Biden continued. “My hope is by next Monday we’ll have a cease-fire.”

Biden, in recent weeks, has pushed harder for a pause in the fighting in order to enable additional humanitarian aid to flow into Gaza and to allow for the release of Israeli hostages. The president has said that he’s hopeful a temporary pause could be the foundation of a more lasting end to the violence that has overtaken Gaza following the Oct. 7 Hamas terror attack that left more than 1,000 Israelis dead.

Pro-Palestinian protesters had congregated earlier in the day around NBC studios at 30 Rockefeller Plaza in anticipation of Biden’s appearance there — an appearance that the White House opted not to confirm until the taping with Meyers was underway, largely due to concerns over security.