Trump: Gaza Deal Very Close, Announcement Could Be Imminent

By Staff, Agencies

US President Donald Trump said Friday mediators were “very close” to reaching a ceasefire and captive release deal between "Israel" and Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

“We’ll let you know about it during the day or maybe tomorrow, and we have a chance of that,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.

However, Hamas said it was still reviewing a proposal from the US, which it received on Thursday, while adding that the offer failed to satisfy its demands. It further said it was holding consultations with other “Palestinian factions".

While Netanyahu told captive families on Thursday that he was principally supportive of the deal on the table, he has yet to bring it before the cabinet to be approved, and several far-right members of his coalition have already come out against it.

War Minister Yisrael Katz said Friday that Hamas must agree to the proposal presented by US envoy Steve Witkoff or be destroyed.

Friday saw Qatar say it was intensively engaged with the United States and Egypt “to stop the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza and end the war.”

The Gulf country’s Ambassador to the United Nations Alya Ahmed Saif Al-Thani told reporters at the UN: “Negotiations are ongoing on the current proposal. We are very determined to find an ending to this horrific situation in Gaza.”

According to a copy of Witkoff’s latest proposal, the authenticity of which was confirmed to The Times of "Israel" by two sources familiar with the negotiations, Hamas would release 10 living "Israeli" captives held in Gaza and return the bodies of 18 deceased captives during a 60-day ceasefire.

In return, "Israel" would release 125 Palestinian detainees, 1,111 Gazans detained since the start of the war on October 7, 2023, and 180 martyrs of Palestinians currently held by "Israel".