Israel and Hamas begin ceasefire talks in Qatar as Netanyahu heads to Washington
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Diverging Reports Breakdown
US President may announce Gaza ceasefire
US President Donald Trump may announce a ceasefire in Gaza as early as July 7. Talks between Israel and Hamas resumed in Doha, Qatar, on Sunday, July 6. The negotiations focus on a possible ceasefire and the release of hostages.
The National reminds that indirect talks between Israel and the terrorist organization Hamas resumed in Doha, Qatar, on Sunday, July 6. The negotiations focus on a possible ceasefire and the release of hostages.
This came two days after Hamas gave a positive response to the proposed agreement. The deal includes:
A 60-day ceasefire;
The release of 10 living hostages;
The return of the remains of 18 people who died in captivity.
According to the National sources, if the agreement is reached within the next few hours, Trump will announce the ceasefire on Monday. The US leader’s statement will likely include a call for Hamas to lay down arms. Trump may urge the group’s leaders to leave Gaza and live in exile.
“He will call on Hamas to lay down its arms and release all the hostages if it wants a permanent ceasefire,” the source said.
The proposals also stipulate that discussions on ending the war and withdrawing Israeli troops from Gaza will begin immediately after the ceasefire takes effect.
Netanyahu Heads to Washington as Israel Revives Gaza Ceasefire Talks
Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu travels to Washington seeking President Trump’s help in finalizing a Gaza ceasefire and hostage deal. Israeli negotiators arrived in Qatar on Sunday to resume discussions over a U.S.-backed proposal. Netanyahu said the team carried “clear instructions” based on terms Israel has already agreed to. Around 50 people are believed to still be held in Gaza, with around 20 thought to be alive. The outcome of this visit could shape not only the Gaza truce, but broader dynamics in the region.
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Amid rising domestic pressure and renewed diplomatic efforts, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is traveling to Washington to meet with President Donald Trump, hoping to finalize a ceasefire and hostage release agreement in Gaza.
Ceasefire Talks Resume in Qatar
Israeli negotiators arrived in Qatar on Sunday to resume discussions over a U.S.-backed proposal. Netanyahu said the team carried “clear instructions” based on terms Israel has already agreed to.
Speaking before his departure, he said, “I believe the discussion with President Trump can certainly help advance these results.”
He reaffirmed Israel’s commitment to securing the return of hostages and neutralizing the threat posed by Hamas.
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The group has reportedly responded to the latest proposal with a “positive spirit,” although sticking points remain, including humanitarian access, troop withdrawal timetables, and the status of the Rafah crossing to Egypt.
Netanyahu Balancing Coalition Pressures
While Foreign Minister Gideon Saar and others back a ceasefire, Netanyahu faces resistance from hardliners within his own coalition.
Public frustration is also mounting.
On Saturday, large crowds rallied in Tel Aviv near the defense ministry, demanding a deal to bring home the remaining hostages.
Roughly 50 people are believed to still be held in Gaza, with around 20 thought to be alive.
The conflict began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas attacked southern Israel, killing 1,200 and capturing 251 hostages.
Israel’s retaliatory campaign has killed more than 57,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza health officials, and displaced much of the population.
Strategic Talks with Trump
As reported by Reuters, this will be Netanyahu’s third visit to the White House since Trump’s return to office.
In addition to the ceasefire, discussions are expected to address regional security issues, including efforts to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons.
Netanyahu said recent developments in the Middle East could offer a chance to “expand the circle of peace,” building on last month’s 12-day air campaign against Iran.
The outcome of this visit could shape not only the Gaza truce, but broader dynamics in the region.
New details emerge on Gaza ceasefire proposal as Netanyahu heads to the White House
Hamas would hand over 10 living and 18 dead hostages, document says. Israeli forces would withdraw to a buffer zone along Gaza’s borders with Israel and Egypt. U.N. agencies and the Palestinian Red Crescent would bring in aid. Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli facilities would be released in exchange for the hostages, but the number is not yet agreed upon. The proposal stops short of guaranteeing a permanent end to the war, but says negotiations for a permanent ceasefire would take place during the 60 days of the ceasefire.. Israeli strikes hit two houses in Gaza City, killing 20 Palestinians and wounding 25 others, a hospital official says. In southern Gaza, Israeli strikes killed 18 Palestinians in Muwasi on the Mediterranean coast, where thousands of displaced people live in tents, the hospital says. The Israeli military said it struck 130 targets across Gaza in the past 24 hours, claiming it targeted militants and control structures, weapons and launchers, and that they killed a number of Hamas command and control facilities, including a senior leader.
“There are 20 hostages that are alive, 30 dead. I am determined, we are determined, to bring them all back. And we will also be determined to ensure that Gaza will no longer pose a threat to Israel,” Netanyahu said before departing, emphasizing the goal of eliminating Hamas’ military and governing power.
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A person familiar with the negotiations shared with The Associated Press a copy of the latest ceasefire proposal submitted by mediators to Hamas, and its veracity was confirmed by two other people familiar with the document. All three spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the sensitive talks with the media.
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The document outlines plans for a 60-day ceasefire during which Hamas would hand over 10 living and 18 dead hostages, Israeli forces would withdraw to a buffer zone along Gaza’s borders with Israel and Egypt, and significant amounts of aid would be brought in. The document says the aid would be distributed by United Nations agencies and the Palestinian Red Crescent. It does not specify what would happen to the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation , the American organization that has distributed food aid since May. Israel wants it to replace the U.N.-coordinated system.
A Trump guarantee
As in previous ceasefire agreements, Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli facilities would be released in exchange for the hostages, but the number is not yet agreed upon.
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The proposal stops short of guaranteeing a permanent end to the war — a condition demanded by Hamas — but says negotiations for a permanent ceasefire would take place during the 60 days. During that time, “President (Donald) Trump guarantees Israel’s adherence” to halting military operations, the document says, adding that Trump “will personally announce the ceasefire agreement.”
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The personal guarantee by Trump appeared to be an attempt to reassure Hamas that Israel would not unilaterally resume fighting as it did in March during a previous ceasefire, when talks to extend it appeared to stall.
Trump said last week that Israel had agreed on terms for a 60-day ceasefire, but it was unclear if the terms were those in the document reviewed by the AP. Hamas has requested some changes but has not specified them.
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Separately, an Israeli official said the security Cabinet late Saturday approved sending aid into northern Gaza, where civilians suffer from acute food shortages. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the decision with the media, declined to give more details.
Northern Gaza has seen just a trickle of aid enter since Israel ended the latest ceasefire in March. The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation’s closest distribution site is near the Netzarim corridor south of Gaza City that separates the territory’s north and south.
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Israel hits 130 targets across Gaza
Israeli strikes hit two houses in Gaza City, killing 20 Palestinians and wounding 25 others, according to Mohammed Abu Selmia, director of Shifa Hospital, which serves the area.
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Israel’s military said it struck several Hamas fighters in two locations in the area of Gaza City.
In southern Gaza, Israeli strikes killed 18 Palestinians in Muwasi on the Mediterranean coast, where thousands of displaced people live in tents, said officials at Nasser Hospital in nearby Khan Younis. It said two families were among the dead.
“My brother, his wife, his four children, my cousin’s son and his daughter. … Eight people are gone,” said Saqer Abu Al-Kheir as people gathered on the sand for prayers and burials.
Israel’s military had no immediate comment on those strikes but said it struck 130 targets across Gaza in the past 24 hours. It claimed it targeted Hamas command and control structures, storage facilities, weapons and launchers, and that they killed a number of militants in northern Gaza.
Rift over ending the war
Ahead of the indirect talks with Hamas in Qatar, Netanyahu’s office asserted that the militant group was seeking “unacceptable” changes to the ceasefire proposal. Hamas gave a “positive” response late Friday to the latest proposal.
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The militant group has sought guarantees that the initial truce would lead to a total end to the war and withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza. Previous negotiations have stalled over Hamas demands of guarantees that further negotiations would lead to the war’s end, while Netanyahu has insisted Israel would resume fighting to ensure the group’s destruction.
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The war began when Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 others hostage. Most have been released in earlier ceasefires. Israel responded with an offensive that has killed over 57,000 Palestinians, more than half of them women and children, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.
The ministry, which is under Gaza’s Hamas government, does not differentiate between civilians and combatants. The U.N. and other international organizations see its figures as the most reliable statistics on war casualties.
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Chehayeb and Sewell reported from Beirut. Associated Press writers Tia Goldenberg in Tel Aviv, Israel, and Joey Cappalletti in Washington contributed.
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Israel and Hamas begin ceasefire talks in Qatar as Netanyahu heads to Washington
Qatari and Egyptian mediators will have their work cut out during the indirect talks between Israel and Hamas. Hamas still seems to be holding out for essentially the same conditions it has previously insisted on – including a guarantee of an end to all hostilities at the end of any truce. The Israeli position may also not have shifted to any major degree. The question now is not only whether the talks in Qatar can achieve a compromise acceptable to both sides – but also whether Trump can persuade Netanyahu that the war must come to an end at their meeting on Monday. At least 57,338 people have been killed in Gaza since the last ceasefire in March.
Netanyahu’s government has rejected this before.
The Israeli position may also not have shifted to any major degree. As he was leaving Israel for the US, Netanyahu said he was still committed to what he described as three missions: “The release and return of all the hostages, the living and the fallen; the destruction of Hamas’s capabilities – to kick it out of there, and to ensure that Gaza will no longer constitute a threat to Israel.”
Qatari and Egyptian mediators will have their work cut out during the indirect talks between Israel and Hamas in trying to overcome these sticking points, which have have derailed other initiatives since the previous ceasefire ended in March.
Israel has since resumed its offensive against Hamas with great intensity, as well as imposing an eleven-week blockade on aid entering Gaza, which was partially lifted several weeks ago.
The Israeli government says these measures have been aimed at further weakening Hamas and forcing it to negotiate and free the hostages.
Just in the past 24 hours, the Israeli military says it struck 130 Hamas targets and killed a number of militants.
But the cost in civilian lives in Gaza continues to grow as well. Hospital officials in Gaza said more than 30 people were killed on Sunday.
The question now is not only whether the talks in Qatar can achieve a compromise acceptable to both sides – but also whether Trump can persuade Netanyahu that the war must come to an end at their meeting on Monday.
Many in Israel already believe that is a price worth paying to save the remaining hostages.
Once again, they came out on to the streets on Saturday evening, calling on Netanyahu to reach a deal so the hostages can finally be freed.
But there are hardline voices in Netanyahu’s cabinet, including the national security minister Itamar Ben Gvir and the finance minister Bezalel Smotrich, who have once again expressed their fierce opposition to ending the war in Gaza before Hamas has been completely eliminated.
Once again, there is the appearance of real momentum towards a ceasefire deal, but uncertainty over whether either the Israeli government or Hamas is ready to reach an agreement that might fall short of the key conditions they have so far set.
And once again, Palestinians in Gaza and the families of Israeli hostages still held there are fervently hoping this will not be another false dawn.
The Israeli military launched a campaign in Gaza in response to Hamas’s 7 October 2023 attacks, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage.
At least 57,338 people have been killed in Gaza since then, according to the territory’s Hamas-run health ministry.
Gaza ceasefire talks begin in Qatar as Netanyahu heads to Washington
Delegations from Israel and Hamas have begun an indirect round of ceasefire talks in Qatar. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu heads to Washington to meet Donald Trump.
Netanyahu said he thinks his meeting with the US president on Monday should help progress efforts to reach a deal for the release of more hostages and a ceasefire in Gaza.
He said he had given his negotiators clear instructions to achieve a ceasefire agreement under conditions Israel has accepted.
Hamas has said it has responded to the latest ceasefire proposal in a positive spirit, but it seems clear there are still gaps between the two sides that need to be bridged if any deal is to be agreed.