Latest Brett McGurk News

To secure Gaza ceasefire, dealmakers overcame enemies' deep distrust

Jan. 22, 2025 19:56 PM EST

Inside a lavish clubhouse on Doha’s waterfront, tensions strained by months of fruitless back-and-forth weighed on negotiators as the hour neared 3 a.m. On the first floor, a Hamas delegation whose leader had once evaded an Israeli airstrike that killed seven family members combed...

Middle East latest: Israel releases 90 Palestinian prisoners after Hamas frees 3 Israeli hostages

Jan. 19, 2025 21:35 PM EST

Israel has freed 90 Palestinian prisoners and detainees. The release came early Monday, more than seven hours after three Israeli hostages released from Hamas captivity in Gaza returned to Israel. A large bus carrying dozens of Palestinian detainees exited the gates of Israel’s...

Guest lineups for the Sunday news shows

Jan. 17, 2025 22:23 PM EST

WASHINGTON (AP) — ABC’s “This Week” — Deputy national security adviser Jon Finer; Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif.; Steve Bannon, former strategist for President-elect Donald Trump; Jonathan Dekel-Chen and Gillian Kaye, parents of Israeli American held hostage by Hamas. ___ ...

Middle East latest: Israel's Netanyahu says Gaza ceasefire deal is not complete

Jan. 16, 2025 00:05 AM EST

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said late Wednesday that a ceasefire agreement with Hamas is still not complete and the final details are being worked out. Netanyahu's statement comes hours after the United States and Qatar announced the deal, which would pause the...

Trump and Biden both claim credit for Gaza ceasefire deal

Jan. 15, 2025 17:45 PM EST

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden and President-elect Donald Trump are both claiming credit for Israel and Hamas agreeing to a ceasefire deal in Gaza on Wednesday after the White House brought Trump's Middle East envoy into negotiations that have dragged on for months. Trump...

Middle East latest: Gaza ceasefire talks press on in Qatar

Jan. 14, 2025 01:13 AM EST

Israel and Hamas appear to be inching closer to a phased ceasefire agreement, officials said Monday. However, a deal hasn't been reached yet and there are a number of obstacles that could still scupper the talks in Qatar. Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza began on Oct. 7, 2023, when...

Biden says he's leaving Trump with a 'strong hand to play' in world conflicts

Jan. 13, 2025 20:21 PM EST

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden said Monday that his stewardship of American foreign policy has left the U.S. safer and economically more secure, arguing that President-elect Donald Trump will inherit a nation viewed as stronger and more reliable than it was four years ago. ...

Significant progress made in talks over Israel-Hamas ceasefire and hostage release, officials say

Jan. 13, 2025 16:42 PM EST

CAIRO (AP) — U.S. and Arab mediators made significant progress overnight toward brokering a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war and the release of scores of hostages held in the Gaza Strip, but a deal hasn't been reached yet, officials said Monday. Four officials acknowledged that...

Biden and Netanyahu discuss the latest in the effort to reach an Israel-Hamas war ceasefire

Jan. 12, 2025 19:27 PM EST

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. President Joe Biden spoke Sunday about efforts to reach a ceasefire and hostage release deal in the Israel-Hamas war, a sign of the intensifying push to reach a deal before Donald Trump’s inauguration next week....

Takeaways from Trump's Mar-a-Lago press conference

Jan. 07, 2025 15:45 PM EST

PALM BEACH, Florida (AP) — Less than two weeks before taking office, President-elect Donald Trump on Tuesday took some of his most audacious claims and promises of the transition period and amped them up to new levels. Speaking to reporters at his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida, Trump...