Negotiations for Ceasefire and Hostage Release in Gaza Progress with High-Level Israeli Involvement

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Negotiations for Ceasefire and Hostage Release in Gaza Progress with High-Level Israeli Involvement

Plans for Gaza's Future After the War

President Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu discussed ongoing negotiations for a ceasefire and hostage release deal with Hamas. The two leaders discussed the deal based on an arrangement outlined by Mr. Biden last year.

The White House said the President discussed the changed regional circumstances following the ceasefire deal in Lebanon, the fall of the Assad regime in Syria, and the weakening of Iran's power in the region.

Netanyahu's office said the prime minister informed Biden how the talks were progressing and updated him on the mandate he has given to the negotiating team in Doha, aimed at advancing the release of the hostages.

The Biden administration has been putting pressure for a deal before the presidential inauguration on Jan. 20 that will see President-elect Donald Trump return to the White House.

A sign of progress in the ongoing talks in Doha, Netanyahu's office said David Barnea, the director of the Mossad foreign intelligence agency, would be traveling to Qatar. His presence means high-level Israeli officials who would need to sign off on any agreement are now involved.

The talks, mediated by the United States, Egypt and Qatar, have repeatedly stalled. Just one brief ceasefire was achieved in the early weeks of fighting.

The White House said Mr. Biden stressed the immediate need for a ceasefire in Gaza and return of the hostages with a surge in humanitarian aid enabled by a stoppage in the fighting under the deal.

Trump's incoming special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, was in Qatar and Israel this week.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said this week a deal is "very close" and he hoped to complete it before handing over diplomacy to the incoming Trump administration. But U.S. officials have expressed similar optimism on several occasions over the past year.

Israel launched an offensive on the Gaza Strip after declaring war against Hamas following the deadly attacks by the group's militants on Oct. 7, 2023, which killed some 1,200 people. Another 251 were taken hostage.

Israel's bombardment and ground invasion of Gaza has killed over 46,000 Palestinians, more than half of them women and children, according to Gaza's Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between fighters and civilians in its count.