US president Donald Trump’s administration has been conducting secret talks with the militant Palestinian group Hamas on the possibility of releasing US hostages being held in Gaza, said two sources briefed on the conversations.
The White House last night confirmed that contacts are taking place.
US special envoy for hostage affairs Adam Boehler held the negotiations with Hamas in Doha, Qatar in recent weeks, the sources said.
Until recently the US had avoided direct engagement with the Islamist group, which carried out a cross-border raid into southern Israel on October 7th, 2023, that triggered a devastating Gaza war.
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Such talks run counter to long-standing US policy against direct contacts with groups that Washington lists as foreign terrorist organisations. The US state department designated Hamas as a terrorist organisation in 1997.
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The previous US role in helping to secure a ceasefire and hostage release deal in the Gaza conflict has been dealing with Israel and Qatari and Egyptian mediators but without any known direct communications between Washington and Hamas.
Axios was first to report on the Doha discussions.
The Israeli government and its embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Mr Boehler’s office declined to comment.
It was unclear when or how the Israeli government was informed of the talks.
The sources said the talks have focused on gaining the release of American hostages still held in Gaza, but one said they also have included discussions about a broader deal to release all remaining hostages and how to reach a long-term truce.
One of the sources said the effort includes an attempt to gain the release of Edan Alexander , believed to be the last living American hostage held by Hamas. He appeared in a video published by Hamas in November 2024.
Four other US hostages have been declared dead in absentia by Israeli authorities.
Jonathan Panikoff, a former US deputy national intelligence officer on the Middle East, said president Trump’s unconventional diplomatic approach carries risks and opportunities.
“On one hand, engaging Hamas directly could make it easier to get US hostages out and help reach a long-term agreement,” said Mr Panikoff, now at the Atlantic Council think-tank. “On the other, there’s a reason the US doesn’t usually negotiate with terrorist groups, knowing Washington will do so incentivises them to repeat the behaviour in the future.”
Mr Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff plans to return to the region in coming days to work out a way to either extend the first phase of the Gaza ceasefire deal or advance to the second phase, a US state department official said on Monday.
Fighting in the Gaza Strip has been halted since January 19th and Hamas has exchanged 33 Israeli hostages and five Thai hostages for some 2,000 Palestinian prisoners and detainees.
Meanwhile, Israel swore in a new commander of its military on Wednesday.
Eyal Zamir, who retired after 28 years with the rank of Maj Gen, was promoted to Lieut Gen, before formally assuming command from Gen Herzi Halevi, who stepped down this week over the fallout from the Hamas-led attack on Israel on October 7th, 2023.
Gen Halevi led the military during the Israeli campaign in Gaza that killed more than 48,000 Palestinians and destroyed much of the enclave, leaving most of the population sheltering in tents or bombed-out buildings.
He announced in January, soon after the Gaza ceasefire deal was agreed, that he would step down from his command, accepting responsibility for the military’s patchy and uncoordinated response to the October 7th attack. – Reuters
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