Deal for release of American hostages in Gaza ‘real close’, US envoy says

Adam Boehler says Hamas is holding one alive American and the bodies of four others

US hostage envoy Adam Boehler speaks during an event in Washington. AFP

A deal for the release of the remaining American hostages in Gaza is "real close" and could come together within weeks, the US hostage envoy said on Sunday.

Adam Boehler told CNN that at least one American hostage is still alive in Gaza, and Hamas is also holding the bodies of four others. He added that an agreement on a long-term truce was also a possibility.

"I believe there is enough there to make a deal between what Hamas wants and what they've accepted and what Israel wants and it's accepted. And I think there is a deal where they can get all of the prisoners out, not just the Americans," he said.

Mr Boehler added he had decided to meet members of Hamas, which the US has designated as a terrorist organisation, to "jump-start" negotiations, which were in a "very fragile place".

"In the end, I think it was a very helpful meeting. It was very helpful to hear some back and forth," he said.

With regard to reports that he had a tense phone call with an Israeli official over the negotiations, Mr Boehler said he understood the concern but that: "We're the United States. We're not an agent of Israel. We have specific interests at play. And we did communicate back and forth. We had very specific parameters."

He did not rule out meeting representatives of Hamas in the future. "You never know. Sometimes you're in the area and you drop by."

Mr Boehler, a businessman who was part of negotiations on the Abraham Accords during Mr Trump's first term, was selected as the new hostage envoy in December. He has since been involved in Gaza hostage release talks, travelling to the Middle East to meet regional officials involved in negotiations.

“He has negotiated with some of the toughest people in the world, including the Taliban, but Adam knows that no one is tougher than the United States of America, at least when President Trump is its leader,” Mr Trump said in a Truth Social post. “Adam will work tirelessly to bring our great American citizens home.”