Analysis | Israel-Gaza war: the secret negotiations that led to hostages deal
- Hamas and Israel agree to a four-day ceasefire, release of hostages in Gaza, Palestinians held in Israeli jails
- Prisoner swap deal was mediated by Qatar and Egypt and agreed by Israel, Hamas and the United States
Shortly after Hamas militants took hostages during their deadly assault on southern Israel on October 7, the government of Qatar contacted the White House with a request: form a small team of advisers to help work to get the captives freed.
The secretive effort included tense personal diplomatic engagement by US President Joe Biden, who held a number of urgent conversations with emir of Qatar and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the weeks leading up to the deal.
It also involved hours of painstaking negotiations including Secretary of State Antony Blinken, CIA Director Bill Burns, national security adviser Jake Sullivan and his deputy Jon Finer, and US Middle East envoy Brett McGurk, among others.
Two officials involved in the effort provided extensive details of the work that led to an agreement in which 50 hostages are to be freed in exchange for 150 Palestinian prisoners during a four-day pause in fighting.
Shortly after October 7, Qatar – a long-established mediator in a volatile region – approached the White House with sensitive information regarding the hostages and the potential for their release, the officials said.