Steve Witkoff, the incoming US Envoy to the Middle East, has announced his plans to travel to Doha later this week to help move forward the ongoing hostage negotiations. He emphasized that a deal is close to being finalized and that US President-elect Donald Trump expects it to be concluded before his inauguration on January 20, or else “all hell will break loose” in the region.
“We’re making a lot of progress, and I don’t want to say too much because I think they’re doing a really good job back in Doha. I’m leaving tomorrow to go back to Doha, but I think that we’ve had some really great progress, and I’m really hopeful that by the inaugural, we’ll have some good things to announce on behalf of the president,” Witkoff stated after receiving a call from Trump with an update on the negotiations during a press conference at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida.
“We’re working in tandem in a really good way, but it’s the president, his reputation, the things that he has said, that are driving this negotiation, and so hopefully it’ll all work out and we’ll save some lives,” Witkoff added.
When asked about the reasons behind the delays in the talks, Witkoff refrained from giving specific details. “I believe we’ve been on the verge of [a deal]. I don’t want to discuss what’s delayed it — no point to be negative in any way,” he said.
Regarding whether the parties involved are waiting for Trump’s presidency to begin before reaching an agreement, Witkoff responded, “No, I think they heard him loud and clear. [This] better get done by the inaugural.”
Witkoff mentioned that he plans to depart for Qatar either tonight or tomorrow night. Israeli and Hamas delegations have been in Qatar since the weekend.
{Matzav.com}