Hamas Agrees to Release 10 Hostages
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The ongoing presence of negotiators from Hamas and Israel in the Qatari capital, Doha, suggests that both sides are serious about clinching a deal.
Yet according to multiple testimonies from Gaza, Hamas is on its last legs. Its military and political leadership has been almost entirely eliminated. Its government no longer governs. Gangs and looters are filling the vacuum.
Trump's meetings with the Israeli leader have brought no apparent breakthrough for a ceasefire in Gaza, where the bloodshed continues unabated.
Israel and Hamas are believed to have agreed that 10 living hostages and the remains of 18 others should be released during the first 60 days of a cease-fire, but they have not reached a consensus on how many Palestinian prisoners should be freed during the same period. Up to 20 hostages are still thought to be alive.
ABC News’ James Longman reports on where the negotiations stand.
The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, a controversial U.S.-backed aid distribution initiative supported by Israel, is currently the primary method for Palestinians in devastated Gaza to access supplies in designated spots after Israel lifted its aid blockade in mid-May.
The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said it would send its negotiating team to Qatar, this after Hamas said it had issued a "positive response" to a U.S.-mediated ceasefire proposal.
The deal comes more than 20 months into the conflict -- and more than three months after a previous deal ended.
Israeli officials will head to Qatar on Sunday for ceasefire talks with Hamas despite the “unacceptable” changes the terrorist group made to the U.S.-arranged Gaza ceasefire proposal, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu‘s office announced.
The indirect negotiations in Doha started on Sunday after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sent a delegation to the Gulf state. Qatar is currently engaging with Hamas and Israel
Qatar is engaging with Israel and Hamas over the ‘framework for talks’, Dr Majed al-Ansari, Advisor to the Prime Minister and Official Spokesperson of the Ministry of