More hostages to be released from Gaza ‘very shortly', Trump says
Trump's comment came during a dinner with politicians at the White House on Friday (Saturday AEST), lauding the efforts of his special envoy Steve Witkoff.
Israeli and Hamas negotiators have been taking part in the latest round of ceasefire talks in Doha since July 6, discussing a US-backed proposal for a 60-day ceasefire.
'We got most of the hostages back. We're going to have another 10 coming very shortly, and we hope to have that finished quickly,' Trump said.
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Trump has been predicting for weeks that a ceasefire and hostage-release deal was imminent, but agreement has proven elusive.
A spokesperson for the armed wing of Hamas, the Palestinian militant group that controls Gaza, said on Friday that the group favoured an interim truce in the war, but could revert to insisting on a full package deal if such an agreement is not reached in current negotiations.
The truce proposal calls for 10 hostages held in Gaza to be returned along with the bodies of 18 others, spread out over 60 days. In exchange, Israel would release a number of detained Palestinians.
Israel's campaign in Gaza has killed more than 58,600 Palestinians, according to Gaza health authorities, which do not distinguish between civilians and combatants.
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