Released hostages meet with Witkoff in Washington, still hoping for face time with Trump

A delegation of seven freed hostages has just wrapped up a meeting in Washington with the Trump administration’s Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff, a source familiar with the matter tells The Times of Israel.

The group is hoping to also get a meeting with US President Donald Trump, but one has yet to be finalized, the source says, adding that the hostage families are disappointed that Trump didn’t devote more attention to the issue during his address to Congress last night.

Channel 12 reports that Witkoff has asked Israel to hold off on returning to the war in order to give him more time to try and reach a breakthrough in talks.

However, they appear stuck, with Witkoff again delaying a planned departure to the region, as a result, an Arab diplomat says.

Channel 12 says Israel believes that time is running out and that it will soon have no choice but to resume fighting. Netanyahu’s office believes that Trump will back whatever choice Israel will make, the network adds.

Released Israeli Hostages in DC hoping to meet @POTUS during their visit pic.twitter.com/sx38FPsWSq

— יונה לייבזון yuna leibzon (@YunaLeibzon) March 5, 2025

Talks have been stuck for weeks, with Israel refusing to abide by the terms of the deal regarding phase two that it had agreed to in January. The sides were supposed to start negotiations regarding the terms of phase two a month ago, but Israel has largely refused to do so, as it doesn’t want to accept a permanent end to the war that leaves Hamas in power, even if it can get all of its hostages back.

It is instead offering to extend the ceasefire through Ramadan and Passover during which the remaining hostages would be released in two batches at the beginning and end of the period, but Hamas has rejected the idea, insisting that it will only release hostages as part of the framework that the sides signed onto in January.