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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
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| US confirms direct talks with Hamas over Gaza hostages | US confirms direct talks with Hamas over Gaza hostages |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| Watch: White House press secretary confirms US in talks with Hamas over hostages | Watch: White House press secretary confirms US in talks with Hamas over hostages |
| The US is holding talks with Hamas over the hostages held in Gaza, the White House has confirmed. | The US is holding talks with Hamas over the hostages held in Gaza, the White House has confirmed. |
| Washington has until now avoided direct engagement with the group, and there is a longstanding US policy against having direct contact with entities it lists as terrorist organisations. | |
| The White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters at a briefing that Israel had been consulted prior to the talks. | The White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters at a briefing that Israel had been consulted prior to the talks. |
| "Two direct meetings" have taken place between Hamas and a US official, "preceded by several communications", a Palestinian source told the BBC. | |
| Gaza food prices spike after Israel halts aid deliveries | |
| Stories of the hostages taken by Hamas from Israel | |
| News of the talks was first reported by Axios, which said the two sides were meeting in Qatar to discuss the release of US hostages as well as a wider deal to end the war. | |
| "When it comes to the negotiations that you're referring to, first of all, the special envoy who's engaged in those negotiations does have the authority," Leavitt said. | |
| The special envoy for hostages, Adam Boehler's work was a "good faith effort to do what's right for the American people", she told reporters. | |
| President Trump believed in doing what was in the best interest of the American people, Leavitt said. | |
| Israel said there are still 59 hostages being held in Gaza, with up to 24 believed to be alive. US citizens are also among the captives. | |
| A former US deputy Assistant Secretary of Defence for the Middle East said the US needs to be "more proactive" about getting its citizens back. | |
| Mick Mulroy, who is also an ex-CIA paramilitary officer, added that "it could complicate the Israelis' ability to get their citizens back if not tightly coordinated". | |
| Israel's prime minister's office said in a statement it has "expressed its position" regarding the direct talks, but did not provide any further information. | |
| According to reports, Boehler met with Hamas representatives in the Qatari capital, Doha, in recent weeks. | |
| Hamas has had a base in Doha since 2012, reportedly at the request of the Obama administration. | |
| The small but influential Gulf state is a key US ally in the region. It hosts a major American air base and has handled many delicate political negotiations, including with Iran, the Taliban and Russia. | |
| Alongside the US and Egypt, Qatar has also played a major role in talks to broker a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. | |
| A US official told Axios that White House envoy Steve Witkoff cancelled a visit to Doha to discuss ceasefire negotiations with Qatar's prime minister on Tuesday after there had been no progress in talks. | |
| Anonymous sources told the US-based news site that discussions between the US and Hamas on releasing the remaining hostages and reaching a long-term truce, has not yet reached a deal. | |
| Additional reporting by Bernd Debusmann |