A deal between Israel and Hamas to release hostages held in Gaza is not expected anytime soon, President Joe Biden said, according to Sky News.

“We’re pushing,” Biden told reporters during a trip to Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

What do we know so far?

Efforts are underway to try to free more hostages, with the heads of the CIA, Mossad and Qatar’s prime minister expected to meet and discuss the matter.

The talks between Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, who is also the Gulf state’s foreign minister, Mossad Director David Barney and CIA Director Bill Burns follow a meeting of the three in Europe last week.

Earlier today, a senior Hamas official, Ghazi Hamad, said the group would not release the Israeli hostages only to have the war resume immediately afterward.

“Our vision is very clear – we want to stop aggression [israeliană] [în Gaza]Ghazi Hamad told Al Jazeera.

“There are very serious discussions and negotiations, and we hope that they will lead somewhere”

At the same time, the White House says that there are “very serious” negotiations between Israel and Hamas regarding a humanitarian pause in Gaza and the release of hostages, writes The Guardian.

“These are very serious discussions and negotiations, and we hope they lead somewhere,” White House national security spokesman John Kirby said Wednesday.

The Hamas leader made his first visit to Egypt in more than a month on Wednesday, a rare personal intervention in diplomacy, amid what sources said were intense talks over a new ceasefire to allow humanitarian aid to flow in. dismissed, writes Reuters.

Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, who usually lives in Qatar, usually intervenes publicly in diplomacy only when there appears to be a chance for progress, Reuters noted.

He last visited Egypt in early November, before announcing the only ceasefire so far, a week-long break that saw the release of more than 100 Israeli hostages.

A source briefed on the talks said emissaries discussed which hostages still held by militants in Gaza could be freed and which Palestinian prisoners Israel could release in exchange for a new truce deal.

According to the source, Israel insisted that all women and men with health problems who remained among the hostages be released.

In addition, the list of prisoners to be released may include Palestinians convicted of serious crimes. The source called the talks intense and said progress could be possible within days.

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