U.S. says Gaza ceasefire talks ongoing; cites GHF statement after deadly aid-site crowd surge

The United States said negotiators remain engaged on ceasefire terms for Gaza and pointed reporters to a GHF statement after what U.S. officials described as a deadly crowd surge at a humanitarian distribution site. State Department spokesperson Tammy said talks were ongoing and that, while she would not provide negotiation details, Secretary Rubio had said he was "hopeful" and that negotiators aimed to move to proximity talks to agree how terms would be implemented. Tammy relayed a GHF statement and U.S. assessments saying there was “credible reason to believe that elements within the crowd, armed and affiliated with Hamas, deliberately fomented the unrest.” She added GHF reported “a troubling pattern of unknown actors circulating false messages about GHF aid site openings,” and noted the incident injured an American GHF employee. Why it matters: Humanitarian distribution safety and a ceasefire agreement are central to reducing civilian harm in Gaza. Independent investigations and accurate reporting of the circumstances are likely to determine future aid access and security arrangements. Details: Tammy said 76,000,000 meals had been distributed to the region to date. She repeated that GHF had issued a statement and that the State Department would refer reporters to GHF for further information. The spokesperson said it was appropriate to await more details before making determinations about responsibility or specific follow-up actions. Context and limits: Tammy described the negotiations as a process: “it appears that, generally, the terms have been agreed to, but, obviously, now you need to have talks about how to implement those terms.” She declined to outline operational negotiation steps. What’s next: The department said it would continue to monitor the situation and to seek further details from GHF and other actors; Tammy provided the organization’s statement text during the briefing.