US negotiating Israel-Gaza ceasefire with Hamas through American in Doha, source says

The US has been talking with Hamas through an American intermediary in Doha this week in hopes of brokering an Israel-Gaza ceasefire agreement, according to a source familiar with the matter, as US officials say President Donald Trump is growing increasingly frustrated with Israel’s handling of the conflict.

The talks have been led on the US side by Bishara Bahbah, the American-Palestinian who led the group “Arab Americans for Trump” during the 2024 presidential campaign and who has been working on behalf of the administration, the source said.

Bahbah remotely exchanged messages with Hamas earlier this year in what became a critical backchannel to secure Israeli-American hostage Edan Alexander, the source said.

Israel also began indirect talks with Hamas in the Qatari capital on Saturday, and working level dialogue continues. But bolstering the line between the Trump administration and Hamas could give US officials a clearer sense of Hamas’s position, particularly as Trump’s frustrations have mounted. In the past, the US has gone through Qatar and Egypt to correspond with Hamas.

Read more: CNN