Turning to the widening crisis in the Middle East, fighting has intensified in southern Gaza around the crowded city of Khan Younis.

The United Nations says thousands of Palestinian civilians taking shelter at a hospital were trapped and struggling to flee even as Israel ordered evacuations.

Aid workers estimate some 500,000 people are packed into the area that's now under heavy attack and reported mass casualties after one of its shelters was struck in the city.

The Gaza Health Ministry says at least 25,000 Palestinians have been killed and more than 63,000 more have been injured since the war started.

Israel estimates 1200 people were killed in the October seven surprise attack by Hamas.

According to reports in The New York Times and Washington Post today, no proposed deal for a cease fire between Israel and Hamas has reached the negotiating table.

Even as international pressure mounts against Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his recent comments opposing a two state solution, only about half of New Jersey's congressional delegation reacted to those remarks.

Our Washington, D.C. correspond Ben Hulac took a closer look at where the members stand on the issue, and he joins me now.

Ben, it's good to see you.

So I'm interested to know what our congressional delegation had to say when you took a poll of their stance on both a cease fire and a two state piece solution.

The gist was that the consensus remains the consensus since really for decades stemming back to the Oslo Accords in the early 1990s was that both Palestinians and Israelis have a right to exist and that the way to achieve peace is through some sort of two state solution.

And that's what members came back to me saying.

There were some details within those responses.

Congressman Gottheimer and Norcross, for example, said we can pursue a two state solution once Hamas is defeated.

And I think Gottheimer added, the Hamas held captives need to be released before peace talks began.

But those were the broad strokes.

Yes.

Which makes sense.

I mean, the hostages, of course, have been a priority for him, as they have been for many folks, including our members in the delegation.

Was it a bipartisan sentiment?

What did you hear from our three Republican federal lawmakers?

I did not hear anything from any of the three of them.

And actually, interestingly, I did not put this in the story.

But a follow up on it, I'm sure they signed on to a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken yesterday condemning the case.

The International Criminal case against Israel for perpetrating what prosecutors have called genocide.

This is the case that South Africa has brought to international officials, saying that what Israel's military and Israeli officials have done in Gaza since the war began in October is tantamount to genocide.

Why is it I mean, I know in my conversations with many of these Congress members and I imagine that you have found the same that there is a lot of hesitation around responses to this topic in general, politically speaking.

Why is that?

Politically speaking, they can't do a lot on their own.

This is the reality of Congress.

It moves as a bloc and Congress can do a heck of a lot when it wants to.

But you also have to have the votes.

And individual members, particularly in the House, don't have a whole lot of clout.

That's the political reality.

Democrats also certainly don't want to get ahead of the Biden administration, and they want to show that there is no daylight between them and the Biden administration.

For the most part, there have been some Democrats who have been critical, often mildly critical of the administration and its support of Israel during the war.

But in general, they are in lockstep.

And a lot of Republicans are, too.

The next thing that I would keep my eyes on an end and am doing that is a potential snag in some funding, federal funding that would go to Gaza.

Senate Democrats are pushing for more aid to flow into Gaza, and that would be part of a broader package of relief money for Israel, Ukraine, Gaza and potentially a deal on the border on the US-Mexico border.

And certainly, as you mentioned, the negotiations over that have been tangled at best.

Ben, Hugh for us reporting from Washington, D.C. Ben, thank you so much.

My pleasure.