US President Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy on Sunday said the US expects the second phase of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal to go forward.
Steve Witkoff made the comment in a CNN interview when asked about Israel’s decision to postpone the release of Palestinian prisoners.
“We have to get an extension of phase one,” Witkoff said. “I’ll be going to the region this week, probably Wednesday, to negotiate that.”
In a later interview with CBS News, Witkoff said that the second phase means ending the war and excluding Hamas from any future government. The agreement was already signed at the end of last May, he said. He added that everything is still under discussion.
Witkoff said he would be in the Middle East for five days. He will travel to Qatar, Egypt, Israel, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.
Witkoff also mentioned American hostage Edan Alexander in his interview with CBS, saying that the US administration is in “frequent contact” with his family. He said that he believes the Trump administration will succeed in releasing Alexander from captivity.
Hostage deal
Since the beginning of phase one, 29 Israeli hostages have been released, as well as an additional five Thai hostages.
The first phase of the hostage-ceasefire deal expires on March 1, at which point Israel and Hamas would return to war.
On Saturday night, the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) announced that Israel will postpone the release of Palestinian prisoners until more Israeli hostages are freed, citing Hamas’s repeated violations of the deal.
Hamas on Sunday condemned Israel’s decision, saying its claim that the hostages’ handover ceremonies are “humiliating” was false and a pretext to evade Israel’s obligations under the Gaza ceasefire agreement.
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