Officials from the Trump administration reportedly engaged in three rounds of direct talks with Hamas leaders inside a secure location in Qatar during the month of March, according to a New York Times article published Thursday.
The discussions were centered around efforts to negotiate the release of American hostage Edan Alexander. Despite multiple meetings, all attempts to reach an agreement ultimately collapsed.
Four individuals with knowledge of the negotiations revealed that Adam Boehler, the U.S. special envoy for hostage affairs, pushed for Hamas to free Alexander so that President Trump could include the announcement in his recent address to Congress. Talks were still ongoing as Trump arrived at the Capitol, but without a breakthrough, the president only made a brief mention of hostages in Gaza during his speech.
These meetings reflect the Trump administration’s strategy of pursuing diplomatic channels and potential deals to secure hostage releases. However, the talks reportedly fell apart due to “furious Israeli opposition, Hamas’s hesitation and the Trump administration’s shifting position.”
In addition to discussing the hostage issue, officials also held conversations on the broader Arab-Israeli conflict and the October 7 massacre—over a meal of knafeh paired with freshly squeezed orange juice.

{Matzav.com Israel}