Israel, Hamas Close In on Hostage Deal Amid Mounting Scrutiny of Gaza Death Toll - The Wall Street Journal

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Qatar has become a key negotiator for the release of hostages held by Hamas. In recent years, the tiny Emirate has led mediation efforts in Afghanistan, Iran and Ukraine. WSJ’s Shelby Holliday explains how Qatar became a diplomatic power broker. Photo illustration: Marina Costa

Israel and Hamas are closing in on an internationally brokered deal to pause fighting and free some of the

roughly 240 hostages taken by the militant group, officials close to the talks said, amid heightened scrutiny of the civilian toll of Israel’s invasion of Gaza.

The hostage talks, brokered by Egypt, Qatar, and the U.S., have moved in fits and starts for weeks and could break down again. But they represent the most active channel of diplomacy since Hamas’s Oct. 7 attacks and the launch of an Israeli military campaign that has claimed more than 13,000 lives, more than half of them women and children, according to health authorities in the Hamas-run Gaza Strip.