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

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 progress has been made and said the coming days would be critical for ending more than 15 months of fighting that has destabilized the Middle East. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to discuss the talks.

A U.S. official briefed on the negotiations said all sides are “closer than we’ve ever been, but it could still fall apart.” The official declined to predict the timing of a potential agreement because he said it is too uncertain, with multiple moving parts still in play.

Two other officials, including one associated with Hamas, said there were still a number of hurdles. On several occasions over the past year, U.S. leaders have said they were on the verge of reaching a deal, only to have talks stall.

Another person familiar with the talks said there had been a breakthrough overnight and there was a proposed deal on the table. Israeli and Hamas negotiators will take it to their leaders for final approval, the person said.

The person said mediators from Qatar had put renewed pressure on Hamas to accept the agreement, while U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's envoy, Steve Witkoff, was pressing the Israelis. Witkoff recently joined the negotiations and has been in the region in recent days.

The person said the mediators had handed the draft deal to each side and the next 24 hours would be pivotal.

An Egyptian official said there had been good progress overnight, but it would likely take a few more days, and the sides were aiming for a deal before Trump's inauguration on Jan. 20.

A Hamas official who spoke anonymously because he wasn't authorized to brief the media said a number of contentious issues still need to be resolved, including an Israeli commitment to ending the war and details about the withdrawal of Israeli troops and the exchange of hostages for Palestinian prisoners.

The Qatari palace said the emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, met with Hamas' delegation in Doha as well as with Witkoff and Brett McGurk, President Joe Biden’s top Middle East adviser. Al Thani also spoke by phone with Biden, who stressed the urgent need for a deal.

The Biden administration, along with Egypt and Qatar, has spent more than a year trying to broker an agreement to end the deadliest war ever fought between Israelis and Palestinians and secure the release of scores of hostages captured in Hamas' attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, which triggered the conflict.

But the sides have been divided over the details of the planned exchange of hostages for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel, as well as the nature of the ceasefire itself. Hamas has said it won't release the remaining captives without an end to the war, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to continue the campaign until “total victory” over the militant group.

Under discussion now is a phased ceasefire. Netanyahu has repeatedly signaled he is committed only to the first phase, a partial hostage release in exchange for a weekslong halt in fighting. The possibility of a lasting ceasefire and other issues would be negotiated after the first phase begins. Hamas has demanded a full withdrawal and complete end to the war, and is hoping this first phase will lead to that outcome.

A deal could weaken Netanyahu’s coalition, which includes two far-right factions that have threatened to leave the government if Israel makes too many concessions. Members of the opposition have promised to give Netanyahu the support he needs to approve a hostage release, but the hardliners' anger could be a source of instability down the road.

Ten hardline members of Israel's parliament sent a letter to Netanyahu expressing their opposition to a deal that does not allow Israeli soldiers to maintain a presence in strategic parts of the Gaza Strip, which previously has been a non-starter for Hamas.

Netanyahu is hoping the prospect of a Trump administration — which includes allies of the West Bank settler movement — will persuade his partners to remain in the government.

Biden, who hopes to wrap up a deal before leaving office next week, spoke with Netanyahu about the talks on Sunday.

The head of Israel’s Mossad foreign intelligence agency, David Barnea, and McGurk were both in Doha. Barnea’s presence meant high-level Israeli officials who would need to sign off on any agreement are once again involved in the talks.

Just one brief ceasefire has been achieved during the war, and that was in the earliest weeks of fighting.

Families of the roughly 100 hostages still held in Gaza have been pressing Netanyahu to reach a deal to bring their loved ones home.

In Gaza, Palestinians hope for a stop to Israel’s military campaign, which has devastated much of the territory and driven around 90% of its 2.3 million people from their homes. At least 14 Palestinians, including a family of five, were killed in three separate Israeli airstrikes Monday in northern Gaza, according to Gaza's Health Ministry.

Five Israeli soldiers were killed in Beit Hanoun in northern Gaza on Monday, raising the number of Israeli soldiers killed in combat in the north over the past week to 15. The large number of fatalities could lead to more support for a ceasefire among the Israeli public.

Israel’s campaign in Gaza has killed more than 46,000 Palestinians, the majority women and children, according to the territory’s Health Ministry, whose count doesn’t give a breakdown between fighters and civilians. Hamas-led militants killed about 1,200 people and abducted around 250 others in the attack that ignited the war.

In Jerusalem, around 1,000 people blocked the main entrance to the city and demonstrated against a deal, marching with a sign that read “You have no mandate to surrender to Hamas.”

In Tel Aviv, dozens of supporters of the hostages spelled out “HOME!” at the entrance to the city’s main military base.

“We’re not getting any guidance yet from the government of Israel, understanding if it is a deal for all the hostages or is it just a partial deal,” said Ruby Chen, whose son, Israeli-American Itay Chen, was taken hostage from his military base. Israel determined that Chen was likely killed on Oct. 7, 2023, and his body is still in Gaza.

Ruby Chen said when it seemed that talks were starting to gain momentum 10 days ago, he flew to Qatar with other families to press for a deal to include all of the hostages, including the bodies of those who have died.

Inside Gaza, “we hear that there are negotiations every day, but we see nothing,” said Mazen Hammad, a resident of the southern city of Khan Younis. “When we see it on the ground, then we believe that there is a truce.”

Federman reported from Jerusalem. Associated Press writers Abby Sewell in Beirut, Aamer Madhani in Washington and Melanie Lidman in Jerusalem contributed to this report.

Follow coverage of the war at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war

Demonstrators hold torches during a protest calling for the immediate release of the hostages held in the Gaza Strip by the Hamas militant group in Tel Aviv, Israel, on Monday, Jan. 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

Demonstrators hold signs and flares during a protest calling for the immediate release of the hostages held in the Gaza Strip by the Hamas militant group in Tel Aviv, Israel, on Monday, Jan. 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

Demonstrators hold torches during a protest calling for the immediate release of the hostages held in the Gaza Strip by the Hamas militant group in Tel Aviv, Israel, on Monday, Jan. 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

Destroyed buildings are seen inside the Gaza Strip from southern Israel, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

A girl watches as Mohammad Eid mourns his cousin Dima, along with her uncle and grandfather, who were killed in an Israeli airstrike on Saturday, during their funeral in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza Strip, Sunday, Jan. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

Mourners pray over the bodies of 5-year-old Dima Eid, her uncle, and her grandfather, who were killed in an Israeli airstrike on Saturday, during their funeral in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza Strip, Sunday, Jan. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

An Israeli military car drives by a protective wall near the border with Gaza Strip, in southern Israel, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

People watch the Gaza Strip from an observation point in Sderot, southern Israel, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

People watch the Gaza Strip from an observation point in Sderot, southern Israel, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

Israeli soldiers look at charred vehicles burned in the Oct. 7 , 2023, cross-border attacks by Hamas militants outside the town of Netivot, southern Israel, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

Israeli soldiers look at charred vehicles burned in the Oct. 7 , 2023, cross-border attacks by Hamas militants outside the town of Netivot, southern Israel, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

An Israeli soldier looks at charred vehicles burned in the Oct. 7 , 2023, cross-border attacks by Hamas militants outside the town of Netivot, southern Israel, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

An Ultra-orthodox Jewish man walks past a graffiti that displays portraits of hostages held by Hamas in Gaza, in Jerusalem, on Monday, Jan. 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

Israeli soldiers and relatives carry the flag-draped casket of Sergeant Yahav Maayan, who was killed in combat in the Gaza Strip, during his funeral at a military cemetery in Modiin, Israel, Sunday, Jan. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

Gali and Nir, the parents of Israeli soldier Sergeant Yahav Maayan who was killed in combat in the Gaza Strip, react next to his grave during his funeral at a military cemetery in Modiin, Israel, Sunday, Jan. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

Mourners attend the funeral of Israeli soldier Sergeant Yahav Maayan who was killed in combat in the Gaza Strip, during his funeral at a military cemetery in Modiin, Israel, Sunday, Jan. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

Nir, father of Israeli soldier Sergeant Yahav Maayan who was killed in combat in the Gaza Strip, reacts next to his son's grave during his funeral at a military cemetery in Modiin, Israel, Sunday, Jan. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

Nir, father of Israeli soldier Sergeant Yahav Maayan who was killed in combat in the Gaza Strip, reacts next to his son's grave during his funeral at a military cemetery in Modiin, Israel, Sunday, Jan. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

The family of Israeli soldier Sergeant Yahav Maayan who was killed in combat in the Gaza Strip, attends his funeral at a military cemetery in Modiin, Israel, Sunday, Jan. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

Gali and Nir, the parents of the Israeli soldier Sergeant Yahav Maayan who was killed in combat in the Gaza Strip, react next to his grave during his funeral at a military cemetery in Modiin, Israel, Sunday, Jan. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

Gali the mother of the Israeli soldier Sergeant Yahav Maayan who was killed in combat in the Gaza Strip, reacts next to his son's grave during his funeral at a military cemetery in Modiin, Israel, Sunday, Jan. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

Gali the mother of the Israeli soldier Sergeant Yahav Maayan who was killed in combat in the Gaza Strip, reacts next to his son's grave during his funeral at a military cemetery in Modiin, Israel, Sunday, Jan. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

Gali, whose son, Sgt. Yahav Maayan, was killed in combat in the Gaza Strip, reacts next to his grave during his funeral at a military cemetery in Modiin, Israel, Sunday, Jan. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

Nir, the father of Israeli soldier Sergeant Yahav Maayan who was killed in combat in the Gaza Strip, reacts next to his son's grave during his funeral at a military cemetery in Modiin, Israel, Sunday, Jan. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

Mohammad Eid carries the body of one of his three relatives killed on Saturday in an Israeli airstrike, as they are prepared for the funeral in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza Strip, Sunday, Jan. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

SOFIA, Bulgaria (AP) — Nickolay Mladenov, the man chosen to serve as director-general for U.S. President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace in Gaza, is a Bulgarian politician and former U.N. envoy to the Middle East who frequently worked to ease tensions between Israel and Hamas.

His appointment — announced by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday and confirmed by a U.S. official — makes him the top official in an unproven international body tasked with governing the Gaza Strip under the next phase of a fragile U.S.-brokered ceasefire after two years of war.

According to the ceasefire agreement, the authority — to be chaired by Trump — is supposed to supervise a new technocratic Palestinian government, the disarmament of Hamas, the deployment of an international security force, additional pullbacks of Israeli troops and reconstruction.

The 53-year-old Mladenov has long been involved in Middle Eastern politics with solid expertise in the region’s dynamic developments.

He is a former Bulgarian defense and foreign minister who served as the U.N. envoy to Iraq before being appointed as the U.N. Mideast peace envoy from 2015-2020.

Milen Keremedchiev, a former diplomat and expert on Middle East politics, said Mladenov’s appointment is the result of his significant contributions to peace, adding that he had earned the trust of both Israel and the Palestinians.

“Bulgaria has long been perceived as a moderate country, one that has avoided extremes in this particularly acute conflict,” Keremedchiev said, adding that during his tenure as foreign minister, Mladenov consistently maintained a carefully balanced approach to the Middle East.

“This approach was positively received by both the Arab world and the State of Israel. Bulgaria’s position has traditionally been one of balance, and he was steadfast in preserving that stance,” he told The Associated Press in an interview in Sofia.

Retired Israeli diplomat Alon Bar, who served as the Foreign Ministry’s deputy director-general for the U.N. and international organizations during Mladenov’s tenure, said it was a “distinct pleasure” working with him.

Bar said that serving as a U.N. envoy is a difficult task given Israel’s long history of rocky relations with the world body, but that Mladenov managed to gain Israel's confidence.

“He was able to create a relationship of trust with the political echelon in Israel, including Prime Minister Netanyahu,” he said. “At the same time, there was a lot of confidence he created on the Palestinian side.”

Mladenov served as the top U.N. envoy in Iraq from 2013 to 2015, before then-U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon appointed him as the organization’s top Mideast envoy. During that job, he helped to defuse cross-border violence between Israel and Hamas and keep up the idea of a negotiated solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

In Bulgaria, Mladenov held the position of defense minister for a year, before serving as foreign minister from 2010 to 2013, during the uprisings in the Middle East known as the Arab Spring when Syria also descended into civil war.

In 2012, he hosted in Bulgaria the first-ever meeting of the Syrian opposition, which brought together representatives of various factions that oppose Bashar Assad’s government. The forum ended with a joint declaration that marked the start of a structured dialogue between the various opposition groups.

In the early years of his political career, Mladenov founded the European Institute in Sofia and was its director until 2001. That same year, he was elected a member of the National Assembly on the ticket of the center-right Union of Democratic Forces.

In 2007, Mladenov was elected a member of the European Parliament, where he met his wife, Gergana, the mother of their three children.

As a sign of recognition for his peace efforts in the Middle East, he received in February 2021 the Grand Star of the Order of Jerusalem, awarded by the Palestinian president to officials, envoys, and prominent figures in recognition of their service.

“He knows us, and he knows the Israelis very well, which is a significant advantage,” said Ahmed Majdalani, a Palestinian former minister and member of the PLO Executive Committee. “I believe he is very well-suited for the position."

Currently, Mladenov is based in the United Arab Emirates, where he was appointed to run the Anwar Gargash Diplomatic Academy.

The diplomat holds master’s degrees in War Studies from King’s College London and International Relations from the University of National and World Economy in Sofia.

Bar, the Israeli diplomat, said Mladenov in his diplomacy was focused “not only on declarations and statements, but on trying to connect and trying to find bridges and trying to see where are the places where the positions of Israel, the Palestinians could meet.”

He said these skills would serve him well in his newest position.

“I think it is good news that he’s coming back to this place for this very difficult task,” Bar said. “I think he’s the right man for the job.”

Associated Press writer Josef Federman in Jerusalem contributed reporting.

CORRECTED NAME SPELLING - FILE - United Nations Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Nickolay Mladenov leaves after a press conference, in Gaza City, Feb. 17, 2016. (AP Photo/Adel Hana, File)

CORRECTED NAME SPELLING - FILE - United Nations Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Nickolay Mladenov attends a press conference at the (UNSCO) offices in Gaza City, Sept. 25, 2017. (AP Photo/Adel Hana, File)