Biden urges Egypt, Qatar to press Hamas for hostage deal

On Friday, President Joe Biden reached out to the leaders of Egypt and Qatar, urging them to encourage Hamas to negotiate a hostage agreement with Israel, a senior administration official revealed to the Associated Press.

This appeal came one day after Biden told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to intensify efforts to achieve a ceasefire in the war in Gaza.

The official mentioned that Biden's national security advisor is scheduled to meet on Monday with relatives of some of the estimated 100 hostages thought to still be in Gaza.

The dispatch of letters to Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi and Qatar’s emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, coincides with President Biden sending CIA director Bill Burns to Cairo for discussions this weekend focused on the hostage situation.