President Donald Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, has walked away from talks to bring a cease-fire to Gaza, pointing a finger at Hamas for the failure to make a deal.
“Hamas does not appear to be coordinated or acting in good faith,” Witkoff said in a statement, according to Politico.
“We will now consider alternative options to bring the hostages home and try to create a more stable environment for the people of Gaza,” he said.
“It is a shame that Hamas has acted in this selfish way,” Witkoff said. “We are resolute in seeking an end to this conflict and a permanent peace in Gaza.”
The word that’s missing in the media is: Hamas. This terrorist group could end this war immediately—by laying down its weapons and releasing all the hostages. Instead, they continue to terrorize and starve the people of Gaza. America is committed to a ceasefire, which would… pic.twitter.com/zRYQlJYuVD
— Tammy Bruce (@statedeptspox) July 24, 2025
A report from Axios said Hamas had made a demand to increase the number of Palestinian prisoners released when Hamas gives up hostages taken in its Oct 7, 2023, raid into Israel. The report, which cited sources Axios did not name, said the demand infuriated Israeli negotiators.
According to the Associated Press, the major issue blocking an agreement is the presence of Israeli troops after a cease-fire is agreed upon. Israel has indicated it will not walk away from Gaza at this point.
Hamas says every Israeli soldier must be withdrawn from Gaza before it will free all of its Israeli hostages. Hamas said it will not disarm.
State Department representative Tommy Pigott offered no information on what Witkoff meant by “alternative options.”
Hamas: “We reject the ceasefire proposal. We will continue our jihad against the Jews and torture their hostages.”
France: “Give em a state!” pic.twitter.com/ARXSab3XfO
— Eitan Fischberger (@EFischberger) July 24, 2025
Earlier Thursday, Israel recalled its negotiators who had been participating in the talks.
As hope for a cease-fire faded, French President Emmanuel Macron said he will formally announce France’s recognition of a Palestinian state in September, according to CNN.
Consistent with its historic commitment to a just and lasting peace in the Middle East, I have decided that France will recognize the State of Palestine.
I will make this solemn announcement before the United Nations General Assembly this coming September.… pic.twitter.com/VTSVGVH41I
— Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) July 24, 2025
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar condemned the comment, according to the Times of Israel.
“The French president’s pretension to conjure a permanent settlement in our land with a mere breath is absurd and unserious,” Sa’ar wrote in a social media post.
“A Palestinian state would be a Hamas state — just as the [Israeli] withdrawal from the Gaza Strip twenty years ago led to Hamas’s takeover there,” he wrote.
Macron “cannot provide security for Israel,” Sa’ar wrote, adding, “Israel’s attempt to base its security on Palestinian promises to fight terror failed entirely in the Oslo process,” referring to a 1990s effort to create a two-state solution to the Middle East dilemma.
“Israel will no longer gamble with its security and its future,” he wrote.
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