Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s diplomatic trip to Washington is progressing. Overnight, Netanyahu met with U.S. National Security Advisor Mike Waltz and President Trump’s Special Envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff. Following these meetings, the Prime Minister’s Office announced this morning (Tuesday) that Israel is preparing to send a delegation to Doha, Qatar, to negotiate the next phase of the hostage release deal.
Netanyahu to Convene the Security Cabinet
According to the Prime Minister’s Office, the discussions with American officials were positive and constructive: “Upon his return from the U.S., the Prime Minister will convene the Security Cabinet to discuss Israel’s positions on the second phase of the deal, which will guide further negotiations.”
The statement from Netanyahu’s office follows President Donald Trump’s remarks yesterday, in which he said he could not guarantee that the hostage deal and ceasefire in Gaza would last much longer. “I have no assurances that it will hold,” Trump stated at the White House.
“We are closely monitoring reports concerning the continuity of negotiations for the next phase, and we call on Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Trump to sustain the current agreement until the last hostage is returned from Gaza, at a known time and in an orderly manner—ensuring the living return home for rehabilitation and the fallen for a proper burial,” the Hostage Families Headquarters said in response to Trump’s comments.
Mahmoud Mardawi, a senior political bureau member of the Hamas terrorist organization, said last night in an interview with Al Jazeera that the possibility of Netanyahu refusing to negotiate the second phase is virtually nonexistent since the Americans want the agreement to continue. Mardawi emphasized: “The current arrangements regarding the Rafah crossing are temporary, and in the second phase of the deal, we will not accept any Israeli military presence anywhere in Gaza.”
