Who convinced Hamas to give up the hostages? – the inside story

According to a U.S. official, the breakthrough came in Egypt when Jared Kushner and special envoy Steve Witkoff joined the negotiations.

By Vered Weiss, World Israel News

Hamas agreed to release hostages after Trump administration representatives convinced the terror group that the captives would be a liability rather than an asset, a senior U.S. official told Walla.

According to a U.S. official, the breakthrough came in Egypt when Jared Kushner and special envoy Steve Witkoff joined the negotiations.

“Kushner and Witkoff arrived after realizing the technical teams had done all they could,” he said. “Within twenty hours, they sewed the deal together.”

By early Thursday morning, Hamas had accepted that the hostages were a burden rather than leverage, allowing negotiators to divide the process into two phases—release of captives first, postwar arrangements second.

Talks accelerated following meetings in New York and Sharm el-Sheikh, as the Trump team joined Egypt, Qatar, and Turkey to mediate an end to the crisis and prepare for Gaza’s postwar stabilization.

The official said the agreement emerged from two weeks of intensive diplomacy culminating in a plan for an international stabilization force.

The process began when U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner compiled elements from previous drafts and presented them to Qatari officials in New York.

The proposal was later shared with other Arab and Muslim governments for feedback.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reviewed the document before his UN address, meeting with Trump in New York as the final framework took shape.

During that weekend, Netanyahu apologized to Qatar’s prime minister, clearing a key obstacle to progress.

After Israel’s cabinet approved the first stage of the deal, Witkoff and Kushner met Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, then traveled to Israel, where they joined ministers in a surprise appearance that drew applause.

Trump personally reassured Arab leaders by phone that every clause of his plan would be honored.

The next step involves stabilizing Gaza under a U.S.-led international force headed by CENTCOM Commander Gen. Bradley Cooper.

“Two hundred American troops will assist in building the first command post within two weeks,” the official said, clarifying they will not deploy across Gaza but help establish oversight to prevent violations. The force will include officers from Egypt, Qatar, Turkey, and possibly the UAE.

“The goal now,” the official added, “is to complete implementation so that when the 72-hour period ends, we finally see the hostages return home.”