MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:
President Trump says there could be a ceasefire deal in Gaza this week, with some hostages in Gaza going free.
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PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: I think there's a good chance we have a deal with Hamas during the week, during the coming week, pertaining to quite a few of the hostages, yeah.
LEILA FADEL, HOST:
That's what Trump will be discussing this evening with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the White House. It will be their first meeting since the U.S. joined Israel in attacking Iran's nuclear sites two weeks ago.
MARTIN: NPR's Daniel Estrin has been following all this from Tel Aviv. Daniel, good morning.
DANIEL ESTRIN, BYLINE: Good morning, Michel.
MARTIN: So how close is a ceasefire deal in Gaza, based on your reporting?
ESTRIN: We are not expecting a ceasefire deal to be announced today. It could take a few more days or longer. Israel and Hamas just began talks in Doha, Qatar, yesterday. And mediators in the region tell us that the Israeli and Hamas delegations are on different floors of the same hotel in Doha, and mediators are shuttling between them. But remember, Netanyahu just landed today in Washington. A person who was briefed on the matter, who was not authorized to speak publicly, told me that Netanyahu is expected to meet Trump's Mideast envoy, Steve Witkoff, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio to talk over the details of what a Gaza deal would look like before Netanyahu meets Trump for dinner.
MARTIN: Can you just give us a sense of what a ceasefire deal might look like? I mean, is it temporary? Would it actually lead to the end of the war in Gaza?
ESTRIN: We saw a recent draft of the deal that is being negotiated. It starts with a 60-day ceasefire. During that time, Hamas would release 10 out of the 20 living hostages it still holds. Israel would release Palestinian prisoners. And starting on day 1 of the ceasefire, the two sides would begin discussing the terms of a final end of the war. Now, Netanyahu's latest mantra is that there will be no more Hamas in Gaza. So we are expecting discussions between the U.S. and Israel this week in Washington about what that would look like. Does that mean expelling the few remaining senior Hamas militants from Gaza? What would it look like for Hamas to lay down its arms? Who would replace Hamas in governing Gaza? Those are the issues that need to be discussed.
MARTIN: So it was just two weeks ago that the U.S. joined Israel's attacks on Iran's nuclear facilities, and now Trump is looking for a ceasefire deal in Gaza. Is this all connected, Daniel? Is there a bigger strategy at play here?
ESTRIN: I think it is all connected, Michel. We spoke to a person briefed on the matter, who was not authorized to speak about it publicly, who said that Netanyahu and Trump will be discussing what kind of diplomatic deal Israel would want to see with Iran, what would want the U.S. to forge with Iran over the future of its nuclear program. You know, Trump did attack Iran's nuclear sites with bombs that Israel does not possess. That is something Netanyahu had long wanted, and now Netanyahu knows what Trump wants. Trump wants an end to the Gaza war. Trump promised his voters when he was running for election that he would end wars. He wants to be the president to end the Gaza war so that he can broker diplomatic ties between Israel and other Arab or Muslim countries.
But that puts Netanyahu in a tough spot. His far-right political partners in government do not want the war to end. But for Netanyahu, ending the war and freeing the hostages from Gaza is a kind of image of victory that could help Netanyahu. He is eyeing a potential new election here in Israel.
MARTIN: That is NPR's Daniel Estrin in Tel Aviv. Daniel, thank you.
ESTRIN: You're welcome. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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