Hundreds of people gathered on Saturday evening to call for the release of captives held in the Gaza Strip. As indirect talks between Israel and Hamas began in Qatar, the imminent arrival of Donald Trump in the White House and the release of a hostage video revived hopes.

U.S., Qatari and Egyptian mediators shuttled between the Israeli and Hamas delegations in Doha on Tuesday, where officials said a deal to halt the war is near.

Israeli negotiators attending ceasefire and hostage release talks in Doha have expressed “cautious optimism,” even as some gaps between both sides persist, a source familiar with the matter told CNN.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is sending the director of the Mossad foreign intelligence agency to ceasefire negotiations in Qatar, his office said Saturday, in a sign of progress in talks on the war in Gaza.

Israel has continued its bombardment of Gaza near continuously since the outbreak of the war in the enclave in October 2023.

Israel and Hamas agreed to a ceasefire deal, mediators announced Wednesday, pausing a devastating 15-month war in the Gaza Strip and raising the possibility of winding

DOHA: Hamas and Israel reached a deal for a ceasefire in Gaza that mediators said would take effect on Sunday (Jan 19) and include a release of hostages held there during 15

If confirmed, the agreement would pause fighting which has raged in Gaza for more than a year and see a number of hostages released.

It was Saturday, the Jewish Sabbath, when Steve Witkoff, President-elect Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy, sat down with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to deliver a stark message from his boss: It was time for a ceasefire deal in Gaza.

Qatar’s prime minister on Wednesday announced a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas, pausing the devastating 15-month war in Gaza and clearing the way for dozens of Israeli hostages to go home.

Netanyahu's office said Thursday his Cabinet won't meet to approve the Gaza ceasefire deal until Hamas backs down from what it called a "last minute crisis."