The U.S. President Says Direct Negotiation with Hamas by Washington is Helping Israel

The President of the United States emphasized that direct negotiations between his administration and the extremist group Hamas are beneficial to Israel as they discuss Israeli hostages. Donald Trump stated on Thursday evening, March 6, while signing executive orders, "We are not doing anything with Hamas, we are not giving cash." He added, "You have to negotiate. There is a difference between negotiating and paying. We want to get these people [Hamas] out." Hamas is recognized as a terrorist organization by the U.S. and the European Union. The news of Adam Bowler, the U.S. chief negotiator regarding hostages, meeting with representatives of the extremist group Hamas in Doha was initially reported by the media, and the White House confirmed this news on Wednesday. Shortly after, Mr. Trump mentioned in a note on his social media that it was a "final warning" to Hamas and called for the release of the hostages. In his recent remarks, Mr. Trump also referred to his recent meeting with eight freed hostages, stating that the stories they told about the mistreatment they experienced in captivity were unbelievable. He said, "59 remain, of which 24 are alive. The rest are dead. They said those 24 who are alive are in very bad condition." Meanwhile, Steve Witkoff, Donald Trump's special representative for Middle East affairs, stated on Thursday that direct negotiations between the U.S. and Hamas militants have taken place in recent days. Mr. Witkoff emphasized that the U.S. is seeking to return all hostages, stating that this requires "good and reasonable actions from Hamas; and I think it is time for them [Hamas] to gain political capital." Mr. Witkoff did not provide further details and only mentioned that he would be traveling to four countries in the Middle East next week. On Thursday, a spokesperson for the U.S. State Department emphasized that the same message had been conveyed in the direct negotiations between the special representative of Donald Trump and the extremist group Hamas that Washington had been sending through other channels until now. Tommy Bruce stated in his press conference, "Nothing different was conveyed, there was no change in position. It was the current U.S. position regarding Hamas that was conveyed, and that Hamas cannot be in Gaza." Steve Witkoff also addressed positive aspects of the Arab countries' plan regarding Gaza, stating, "There are many compelling features in it." Previously, some U.S. officials had expressed their opposition to this plan, including Brian Hughes, spokesperson for the National Security Council at the White House, who stated that this plan does not address "the reality that Gaza is currently uninhabitable," and Donald Trump continues to emphasize his position on U.S. control over Gaza. However, Steve Witkoff stated on Thursday that more discussion about this plan is needed and that "this is the first good faith step from the Egyptians." He added, "The bigger point is that President Trump's comments about Gaza have encouraged others in the Middle East to actively propose what we might consider." In response to the question of whether the Arab plan for the reconstruction of Gaza alongside the presence of Palestinians there would be accepted, he said, "We are evaluating everything there; it is a bit early to comment." He emphasized that the reconstruction of Gaza will take 10 to 15 years and during this time it will be uninhabitable. The Arab countries' plan, released by Egypt on Tuesday, proposes that an independent committee of technocrats take over the administration of the Gaza Strip for six months, after which control of the strip would be handed over to the Palestinian Authority. Additionally, according to this plan, contrary to Mr. Trump's proposal, Palestinians would remain in the strip during the reconstruction of Gaza, and international peacekeeping forces would be dispatched to the area.