Hostage Deal

This comes following reports that senior members of Hamas's leadership outside of Gaza have been in Turkey in recent days.

Israel rules out Turkey as a mediator for hostages as Hamas demands a complete end to the Israel-Hamas War.

Throughout Saturday, a total of approximately 80 Hezbollah projectiles crossed from Lebanon into Israel. 

"Together, with our bodies, without any violence and in silence, we will sit in front of the access roads to government institutions in Jerusalem," the group said.

Hostages, like my son Itay and the other 101 hostages who are held captive in Hamas dungeons, remain secondary still.

Concern is high that the transition of power in Washington will make it impossible to secure a deal over the next three months.

“Hamas, tragically, has demonstrated that it's not going to engage on that despite the renewed efforts we've made in recent weeks,” Blinken stated.

In a stark address at the Jewish Federation of North America General Assembly, Israeli journalist Barak Ravid criticized the Israeli government's handling of hostage negotiations.

Expert Eyal Ofer suggests Israel bypass Qatari mediation, engage directly with hostage holders, and leverage Egypt's growing role in negotiations.

Qatar is arguing that it won’t act as a mediator any longer, threatening the fate of the hostages because a deal would be harder without Doha in the middle.