WASHINGTON, November 5. /TASS/. US President Joe Biden stated progress on the issue of providing for a humanitarian pause in the Gaza Strip, the White House press pool said.

Biden was asked whether there is progress in supporting the humanitarian pause in the Palestine enclave. "Yes," the US President answered with his thumb up.

Humanitarian pauses during hostilities can be helpful not merely for Palestinian civilians but also to Israel, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Saturday.

Tensions flared up in the Middle East after Hamas militants from the Gaza Strip attacked Israeli territory on October 7, when many Israelis living in the settlements near the border were killed and more than 200 people, including children, women and the elderly, were taken hostage. Hamas views its attack as a response to Israeli authorities’ steps against the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem. Israel declared a total blockade of the Gaza Strip and launched bombardments of the enclave and some areas in Lebanon and Syria. Clashes are also reported in the West Bank. On October 27, Israel Defense Forces Spokesman Daniel Hagari said the IDF was expanding its ground operation in Gaza.