Trump envoy hopes for Gaza ceasefire deal by week’s end as talks advance

President Donald Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, said on July 8 that he is “hopeful” a ceasefire deal for Gaza could be reached by the end of the week, as negotiators make significant strides in resolving key issues.

Witkoff’s comments came as President Trump held a second meeting in as many days with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House, underscoring the urgency of ending the conflict between Israel and Hamas, Caliber.Az reports via foreign media.

“He’s going to come over again tonight. We’re talking about Gaza, mostly Gaza right now,” Trump said earlier in the day during a Cabinet meeting. “We’re going to be talking about, I would say, almost exclusively, Gaza. We got to get that solved.”

Witkoff, who is expected to travel to Qatar later this week to take part in ongoing ceasefire negotiations that began on July 6, said the discussions had narrowed from four unresolved issues to one.

“We’re in proximity talks now, and we had four issues, and now we’re down to one after two days of proximity talks. So, we are hopeful that by the end of this week, we will have an agreement that will bring us into a 60-day Cease fire,” Witkoff said.

According to Witkoff, the deal under consideration could see the release of up to 10 living hostages and nine deceased ones. A Qatari delegation also met with senior White House officials on Tuesday to discuss the ceasefire initiative, a source familiar with the matter confirmed.

Despite diplomatic efforts, fighting on the ground has continued unabated. The Gaza Health Ministry has reported hundreds of casualties from Israeli strikes over the past 12 days.

An Israeli source familiar with the talks said the remaining sticking point is the mapping of the Israeli military’s withdrawal from Gaza. Under the current proposal, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) would withdraw from parts of northern Gaza on the first day of the ceasefire and from parts of southern Gaza on the seventh. However, exact withdrawal maps are still under discussion between Israel and Hamas.

This issue remains particularly thorny, with both sides holding starkly different positions. Hamas insists on a full Israeli withdrawal and a permanent end to hostilities, while Israel intends to retain security control in Gaza in any post-war arrangement. A key point of contention is Israel’s aim to maintain a presence along the Philadelphi Corridor, the border area between Gaza and Egypt, to monitor cross-border activity.

Speaking after his meetings with U.S. lawmakers on Capitol Hill, Netanyahu reiterated Israel’s goals.

“We have still to finish the job in Gaza, release all our hostages, eliminate and destroy Hamas military and governance capabilities, because Gaza must have a different future for our sake, for everyone’s sake, and no country will settle for less. We certainly will not,” he said. “These are all things that I discussed with President Trump.”

Hamas, meanwhile, continues to demand a permanent ceasefire, UN-led humanitarian aid delivery, and Israel’s withdrawal to its positions prior to March 2, before the latest offensive and reoccupation of northern Gaza.

By Vugar Khalilov