‘Good news’: Trump hints at Gaza ceasefire deal

Qatar’s PM will meet Trump at the White House as Israeli officials say a hostage deal could be agreed ‘within days’ after Jerusalem agreed to decrease its military presence in Gaza.

Donald Trump speaks in the Oval Office as Secretary of State Marco Rubio looks on. Picture; AFP.

Donald Trump has declared he has “good news” on Gaza ceasefire talks as Israel reportedly agrees to withdraw troops from a significant area of the Strip.

The US President made the ‘good news’ remark without elaborating at a White House event, ahead of a meeting with the Prime Minister of Qatar – a key negotiator in the truce negotiations.

Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani is due at the White House on Wednesday (local time), reportedly to discuss the negotiations. Mr Trump’s special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, said the talks in Doha were “going well.”

Separately, Israeli officials told local media that Jerusalem had agreed to significantly decrease its military presence in Gaza during the proposed 60-day truce.

Sources told The Jerusalem Post that Israel had presented truce negotiators with new maps showing Defence Forces deployment, in which it was clear Jerusalem had effectively ceded control over a key corridor.

The so-called Morag Corridor, which runs from West to East across Gaza, separates the southern city of Rafah from the rest of the Strip.

The offer to withdraw troops from the Morag Corridor means the way was open for a deal with Hamas that could be reached “within days,” officials told The Times of Israel.

A senior diplomatic official told Israeli reporters a hostage deal – involving the release of 10 living hostages and the return of 18 bodies – was now “attainable.”

According to the source, the mediators believe the new maps “significantly advance the chances of reaching a deal soon,” according to The Jerusalem Post.

Optimism that a deal between Hamas and Israel could be reached during Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to the White House last week faded as he left Washington with no discernible movement in negotiations.

Both sides have dug in on red lines, with the Israeli Prime Minister refusing to agree a permanent ceasefire that doesn’t include the disarming of Hamas, and the militant group insisting on the withdrawal of Israeli troops.

Speaking in Gaza on Wednesday (local time), Israel’s army chief Eyal Zamir said: “In the coming days, we will know whether or not we have an agreement” in the ongoing truce negotiations.

If a deal is not reached, Israel will “intensify and expand combat operations as much as possible, beyond what we are currently doing”, General Zamir said.