Trump says US in ‘very deep’ talks with Hamas, warns some captives may have died

CAIRO – 7 September 2025: US President Donald Trump said Washington is holding “very deep” talks with Hamas over the captives that the group still holds in Gaza since the October 7, 2023 attacks on Israel.

“We are in very deep negotiations with Hamas,” Trump said in remarks to the press at the White House.

Trump warned Hamas that “if you don’t let them (the captives) all out, it’s going to be a tough situation. It’s going to be nasty.”

Hamas is believed to still hold around 48 captives, with around 20 thought to be alive.

However, the group has warned that the recent expansion of Israeli military operations in Gaza City poses a threat to the captives’ lives.

Trump told reporters that “I think of the 20, there could be some that have recently died, is what I’m hearing. I hope that's wrong.”

“There are 20 people, maybe a little less, but there are 20 people that we want out. We want the bodies.”

Israel Evading Ceasefire

In mid-August, Hamas agreed on a proposal put forward by Arab mediators Egypt and Qatar, calling for a 60-day temporary ceasefire and the release of half of living and dead captives still held in Gaza.

Moreover, Hamas has reiterated their openness to a comprehensive deal that would see the release of all captives in one go in exchange for a permanent ceasefire and the withdrawal of Israeli troops from the enclave.

Meanwhile, Israel has not issued an official response to the mediator’s proposal, which is originally based on a deal presented earlier by US special envoy Steve Witkoff.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty, in a phone call with Witkoff on Saturday, emphasized the urgency of Israel responding to the proposed deal.

The foreign minister said the proposed ceasefire can pave the way for de-escalation, humanitarian access, and the release of prisoners and captives.

Flattening Gaza City

Despite de-escalation efforts, Israel is proceeding with a globally-condemned operation to take over Gaza City, home to nearly half of the enclave’s 2.2 million population, and displace its residents.

Israeli airstrikes have flattened high-rise residential buildings and ordered residents to evacuate southward, threatening a deeper humanitarian crisis in an enclave that is already suffering a famine confirmed by a UN-backed report last month.

Since the start of the war in October 2023, Israel has killed 64,368 Palestinians in Gaza, many of them women and children, and injured over 162,300 more, according to the enclave’s health ministry.

Israeli has also destroyed homes and crucial facilities including hospitals and schools, forced most of the population to flee their homes, and plunged the enclave into a confirmed famine that has killed 382 people, including 135 children.