Israel reportedly presented Hamas with a list of 34 hostages that it insists must be released as part of the first phase of a deal, including 11 names that do not meet Hamas’s criteria for a deal, Egyptian news channel Al-Ghad reported, citing official sources, on Saturday night. Al-Ghad‘s sources said that some of … Read more
No progress was made towards the completion of a hostage deal/ceasefire agreement on Thursday, and CIA Director William J. Burns, who was in Doha for the talks, left Qatar after being there for a day, a US official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, told The Washington Post on Friday. Burns is no longer … Read more
Two primary obstacles remain in the hostage deal/ceasefire negotiations in Doha, Hamas sources told the Hezbollah-affiliated Lebanese news outlet Al-Akhbar on Thursday. The first of these issues is Israel’s demand that Hamas provide it with “a list of the names of all living and deceased prisoners,” the sources told Al-Akhbar. The second reportedly concerns … Read more
Significant progress is being made, and a hostage deal can be reached within a month, two officials with knowledge about the matter told The Jerusalem Post on Tuesday. Behind the scenes, there is a positive atmosphere in the talks, according to officials involved in the negotiations, Hamas, and Arab media reports. Brett McGurk, the … Read more
Both Israel and Gaza-based terror groups Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad have indicated willingness to cooperate and be flexible in order to reach a ceasefire agreement, Egyptian sources told the Hezbollah-affiliated Lebanese newspaper Al-Akhbar. However, the deal’s approval ultimately is reportedly dependent on Israel. According to the Lebanese outlet, Israel requested to shorten the … Read more
Mossad chief David Barnea met with Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani in Doha on Wednesday to discuss the Gaza hostage deal and the ceasefire negotiations, according to two sources familiar with the details. Barnea’s visit to Qatar is part of efforts to achieve a breakthrough in negotiations for a deal and transition … Read more
Hamas has given Egyptian mediators a list of Israeli hostages that are currently being held in captivity by the terror group, Saudi news channel Al Arabiya reported on Tuesday. The update comes as the Saudi outlet reported that officials confirmed that negotiations were privately progressing and that secret communications were in the works to … Read more
Hamas is attempting to determine the number of living Israeli hostages it and other terrorist groups in the Gaza Strip are holding, Palestinian sources told Saudi-owned news outlet Asharq Al-Awsat on Saturday. The sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that Hamas leadership reached out to other groups to assess the number of living hostages. The report … Read more
Israel estimates that Hamas is willing to compromise on several points of disagreement in the hostage deal negotiations, an Israeli official said on Saturday. “Hamas is showing a certain degree of willingness to make compromises, but they’re not fools,” the official said. They want to see this kind of willingness from Israel as well. … Read more
US President Joe Biden, while speaking to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during their Tuesday phone call, reportedly told the latter that the time was right for a hostage deal. “We have an opportunity now – let’s get the hostages out,” Biden reportedly said. Biden’s conversation with Netanyahu took place shortly after Israel’s security cabinet … Read more
