Remarks by US envoy for hostages Adam Boehler have caused consternation among Israeli officials. AFP
Remarks by US envoy for hostages Adam Boehler have caused consternation among Israeli officials. AFP
Remarks by US envoy for hostages Adam Boehler have caused consternation among Israeli officials. AFP
Remarks by US envoy for hostages Adam Boehler have caused consternation among Israeli officials. AFP

Israeli government furious after US hostage envoy bombshells


Thomas Helm
  • English
  • Arabic

Live updates: Follow the latest on Israel-Gaza

US officials are striking an emollient tone after comments by the Trump administration’s hostage envoy Adam Boehler raised major concerns in Israel when he described Hamas as “nice guys” and said his country “is not an agent of Israel”.

Israeli ministers were reportedly furious at earlier revelations that the US had been holding direct negotiations with Hamas about the future of the Gaza ceasefire deal struck in January.

Mr Boehler then prompted more concern with a series of media interviews on US and Israeli television channels, in which he said the US had “specific interests at play” and dismissed the reported concerns of senior Israeli ministers over the direct talks with Hamas, among other bombshells.

His comments raised fears in Israel that the US, Israel’s most important ally, which has played a major role in hostage negotiations and supporting the country throughout the Gaza war, could become a more unpredictable partner under President Donald Trump.

US President Donald Trump receives Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House in Washington. AP
US President Donald Trump receives Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House in Washington. AP

Chuck Freilich, senior researcher at think tank INSS and Israel's former deputy national security adviser, told The National that whoever approved Mr Boehler's comments had "violated decades of American policy of not talking to Hamas since it was established and a general policy of not talking to terrorist organisations".

Mr Boehler later said in a post on X: "I want to be CRYSTAL CLEAR as some have misinterpreted. Hamas is a terrorist organisation that has murdered thousands of innocent people. They are BY DEFINITION BAD people."

The day after Mr Boehler’s interviews, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said his country’s direct negotiations with Hamas were a “one-off situation” that have not “borne fruit”.

“Our special envoy for hostages, whose job it is to get people released, had an opportunity to talk directly to someone who has control over these people and was given permission and encouraged to do so,” Mr Rubio said.

Mr Freilich said there were a number of meetings "so it’s more than a one-off, but let’s say it was a one-time attempt to conduct talks with them, it may have undermined the Witkoff channel," he added, referring to US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, much-respected among Israelis who want freeing hostages prioritised. "It looks like maybe the administration isn’t co-ordinated and talking in one voice."

Steve Witkoff, US special envoy to the Middle East, has said 'all things are on the table' in talks with Hamas, as long as it lays down its weapons and leaves Gaza. Bloomberg
Steve Witkoff, US special envoy to the Middle East, has said 'all things are on the table' in talks with Hamas, as long as it lays down its weapons and leaves Gaza. Bloomberg

Mr Rubio's comments came as Mr Witkoff, a key figure in the effort to release hostages in Gaza, a number of whom hold US citizenship, said “all things are on the table” in current talks, provided that Hamas demilitarises and leaves Gaza. “If they leave, then all things are on the table for a negotiated peace and that’s what they’ll need to do,” he said.

Meanwhile, many Israeli outlets criticised the hostage envoy, publishing opinion pieces describing the official as "naive".

A team of mid-level Israeli negotiators arrived in Qatar on Monday for the latest indirect negotiations with Hamas on the fate of the Gaza ceasefire. Sources told The National that Israel's level of representation in Doha underlined an apparent lack of interest in negotiating the second phase of the deal, which involves a permanent ceasefire in Gaza and a full Israeli withdrawal from the territory.

Despite polling in Israel consistently showing that a majority of the public favours the continuation of a deal to release hostages, the far-right government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu features a number of ministers vehemently opposed to any agreement with Hamas. Mr Netanyahu himself is accused by many in Israel of stalling on a deal to stop his coalition from collapsing.

Delays in the transition from the expired first phase of the deal to the second have raised fears that Israel’s leadership is prepared to resume fighting, a move that would plunge Gaza into further humanitarian disaster and, critics say, put the remaining living hostages in Gaza in mortal danger.

Israel’s new military chief of staff Eyal Zamir on Monday said his country “must be prepared for 2025 to be a year of war”.

Israel-Gaza war: Trump was last hope for Gaza, Dearborn residents say, as they fend off election criticism

Reuters
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Directors: Anthony Russo, Joe Russo

Starring: Robert Downey Jr, Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Chris Hemsworth, Josh Brolin

4/5 stars 

Company Profile:

Name: The Protein Bakeshop

Date of start: 2013

Founders: Rashi Chowdhary and Saad Umerani

Based: Dubai

Size, number of employees: 12

Funding/investors:  $400,000 (2018) 

The years Ramadan fell in May

1987

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1888

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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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In numbers: China in Dubai

The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000

Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000

Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2018/19: 120,000

Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000

Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent

Auron Mein Kahan Dum Tha

Starring: Ajay Devgn, Tabu, Shantanu Maheshwari, Jimmy Shergill, Saiee Manjrekar

Director: Neeraj Pandey

Rating: 2.5/5

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Sri Lanka-India Test series schedule
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6.30pm Madjani Stakes Rated Conditions (PA) I Dh160,000 1,900m I Winner: Mawahib, Tadhg O’Shea (jockey), Eric Lemartinel (trainer)

7.05pm Maiden Dh150,000 1,400m I Winner One Season, Antonio Fresu, Satish Seemar

7.40pm: Maiden Dh150,000 2,000m I Winner Street Of Dreams, Pat Dobbs, Doug Watson

8.15pm Dubai Creek Listed Dh250,000 1,600m I Winner Heavy Metal, Royston Ffrench, Salem bin Ghadayer

8.50pm The Entisar Listed Dh250,000 2,000m I Winner Etijaah, Dane O’Neill, Doug Watson

9.25pm The Garhoud Listed Dh250,000 1,200m Winner Muarrab, Dane O’Neill, Ali Rashid Al Raihe

10pm Handicap Dh160,000 1,600m Winner Sea Skimmer, Patrick Cosgrave, Helal Al Alawi

The biog

Age: 59

From: Giza Governorate, Egypt

Family: A daughter, two sons and wife

Favourite tree: Ghaf

Runner up favourite tree: Frankincense 

Favourite place on Sir Bani Yas Island: “I love all of Sir Bani Yas. Every spot of Sir Bani Yas, I love it.”

Electoral College Victory

Trump has so far secured 295 Electoral College votes, according to the Associated Press, exceeding the 270 needed to win. Only Nevada and Arizona remain to be called, and both swing states are leaning Republican. Trump swept all five remaining swing states, North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, sealing his path to victory and giving him a strong mandate. 

 

Popular Vote Tally

The count is ongoing, but Trump currently leads with nearly 51 per cent of the popular vote to Harris’s 47.6 per cent. Trump has over 72.2 million votes, while Harris trails with approximately 67.4 million.

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AUSTRALIA SQUAD v SOUTH AFRICA

Aaron Finch (capt), Shaun Marsh, Travis Head, Chris Lynn, Glenn Maxwell, D'Arcy Short, Marcus Stoinis, Alex Carey, Ashton Agar, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Pat Cummins, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Adam Zampa

The biog

Favourite colour: Brown

Favourite Movie: Resident Evil

Hobbies: Painting, Cooking, Imitating Voices

Favourite food: Pizza

Trivia: Was the voice of three characters in the Emirati animation, Shaabiyat Al Cartoon

The five pillars of Islam

1. Fasting 

2. Prayer 

3. Hajj 

4. Shahada 

5. Zakat 

Where to buy art books in the UAE

There are a number of speciality art bookshops in the UAE.

In Dubai, The Lighthouse at Dubai Design District has a wonderfully curated selection of art and design books. Alserkal Avenue runs a pop-up shop at their A4 space, and host the art-book fair Fully Booked during Art Week in March. The Third Line, also in Alserkal Avenue, has a strong book-publishing arm and sells copies at its gallery. Kinokuniya, at Dubai Mall, has some good offerings within its broad selection, and you never know what you will find at the House of Prose in Jumeirah. Finally, all of Gulf Photo Plus’s photo books are available for sale at their show. 

In Abu Dhabi, Louvre Abu Dhabi has a beautiful selection of catalogues and art books, and Magrudy’s – across the Emirates, but particularly at their NYU Abu Dhabi site – has a great selection in art, fiction and cultural theory.

In Sharjah, the Sharjah Art Museum sells catalogues and art books at its museum shop, and the Sharjah Art Foundation has a bookshop that offers reads on art, theory and cultural history.

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Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg

Barcelona v Liverpool, Wednesday, 11pm (UAE).

Second leg

Liverpool v Barcelona, Tuesday, May 7, 11pm

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Members of Syria's Alawite minority community face threat in their heartland after one of the deadliest days in country’s recent history. Read more

ZIMBABWE V UAE, ODI SERIES

All matches at the Harare Sports Club:

1st ODI, Wednesday - Zimbabwe won by 7 wickets

2nd ODI, Friday, April 12

3rd ODI, Sunday, April 14

4th ODI, Tuesday, April 16

UAE squad: Mohammed Naveed (captain), Rohan Mustafa, Ashfaq Ahmed, Shaiman Anwar, Mohammed Usman, CP Rizwan, Chirag Suri, Mohammed Boota, Ghulam Shabber, Sultan Ahmed, Imran Haider, Amir Hayat, Zahoor Khan, Qadeer Ahmed

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Price, base: Dh359,200

Engine: 2.9L twin-turbo V6

Transmission: Eight-speed automatic

Power: 450hp at 5,700rpm

Torque: 600Nm at 1,900rpm

Fuel economy, combined: 8.7L / 100km

The Sand Castle

Director: Matty Brown

Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea

Rating: 2.5/5

Cry Macho

Director: Clint Eastwood

Stars: Clint Eastwood, Dwight Yoakam

Rating:**

PSA DUBAI WORLD SERIES FINALS LINE-UP

Men’s:
Mohamed El Shorbagy (EGY)
Ali Farag (EGY)
Simon Rosner (GER)
Tarek Momen (EGY)
Miguel Angel Rodriguez (COL)
Gregory Gaultier (FRA)
Karim Abdel Gawad (EGY)
Nick Matthew (ENG)

Women's:
Nour El Sherbini (EGY)
Raneem El Welily (EGY)
Nour El Tayeb (EGY)
Laura Massaro (ENG)
Joelle King (NZE)
Camille Serme (FRA)
Nouran Gohar (EGY)
Sarah-Jane Perry (ENG)

Batti Gul Meter Chalu

Producers: KRTI Productions, T-Series
Director: Sree Narayan Singh
Cast: Shahid Kapoor, Shraddha Kapoor, Divyenndu Sharma, Yami Gautam
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The 12 Syrian entities delisted by UK 

Ministry of Interior
Ministry of Defence
General Intelligence Directorate
Air Force Intelligence Agency
Political Security Directorate
Syrian National Security Bureau
Military Intelligence Directorate
Army Supply Bureau
General Organisation of Radio and TV
Al Watan newspaper
Cham Press TV
Sama TV

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Engine: 1.5-litre turbo

Power: 181hp

Torque: 230Nm

Transmission: 6-speed automatic

Starting price: Dh79,000

On sale: Now

Updated: March 13, 2025, 8:30 AM`