Former Secretary of State Tony Blinken categorically denied a report in Haaretz that he delayed an offer from Hamas immediately after the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks on Israel to free civilian hostages taken by the terrorist group.

In an article published Tuesday alleging that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ignored warnings from the United Arab Emirates about the attacks, Haaretz reported that Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani had called Blinken on Oct. 7, conveying a message from Hamas offering the unconditional release of hostages under 18 and over 50 years old from Gaza, which he said Israel had refused.

The outlet reported that Blinken had told al-Thani that he wanted to wait three days to discuss the offer with Netanyahu in person when he would travel to Israel, telling al-Thani, “Right now, the situation is complex. Israel is still under attack, and there’s no one to talk to.”

Haaretz further reported that, when Blinken arrived in Israel, around a week after the attack, he told al-Thani that he did not receive a clear answer on hostage negotiations from Netanyahu. The next day, Blinken reportedly told al-Thani that Netanyahu wanted the Qatari leader to mediate talks with Hamas.

Ryan Grim, a founder of the Hamas-sympathetic Drop Site News, reposted an excerpt of the article on X, asserting, “Blinken had the opportunity to free every single civilian hostage and de-escalate the situation. Instead he wanted war.”

Blinken responded, “For the record, this is false. Complete fiction.”