WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump on Sunday said talks on implementing a truce for Gaza will take days, while his foreign policy chief, Marco Rubio, warned that Israel needs to stop bombing for a hostage release to happen.
"They're in negotiations right now as we speak. They've started the negotiations. It'll last a couple of days," Trump told reporters at the White House.
"We'll see how it turns out. But I'm hearing it's going very well," he added.
In a text exchange with CNN released Sunday, Trump said "yes" when asked if Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was on board with ending the military campaign in Gaza.
Trump urges negotiators to 'move fast'
In a separate post on his Truth Social platform, Trump urged Hamas and Israeli negotiators to "move fast," adding that there had been "very positive discussions" with the Palestinian group.
"There have been very positive discussions with Hamas, and countries from all over the World (Arab, Muslim, and everyone else) this weekend, to release the hostages, end the war in Gaza, but, more importantly, finally have long sought PEACE in the Middle East," he said.
"These talks have been very successful, and are proceeding rapidly. The technical teams will again meet Monday, in Egypt, to work through and clarify the final details. I am told that the first phase should be completed this week, and I am asking everyone to MOVE FAST."
Negotiators from Israel and Hamas were set to hold talks in the Egyptian resort town of Sharm El-Sheikh, with Netanyahu expressing hope that hostages held in Gaza could be released within days.
However, Hamas called for a swift start to a hostage-prisoner exchange with Israel.
"Hamas is very keen to reach an agreement to end the war and immediately begin the prisoner exchange process in accordance with the field conditions," a senior Hamas official told AFP on condition of anonymity.
Separately, Rubio called for a halt to Israeli bombing on Gaza.
"I think the Israelis and everyone acknowledge you can't release hostages in the middle of strikes, so the strikes will have to stop," the secretary of state told CBS News talk show "Face the Nation."
"There can't be a war going on in the middle of it."
The diplomatic push follows the positive response by Hamas to Trump's roadmap for an end to the fighting and the release of captives in Gaza in exchange for Palestinians held in Israeli jails.
Rubio told NBC's "Meet the Press" that there were "logistical challenges" to address to pave the way for the hostage release.
He also predicted that the longer-term goals would be "even harder" to attain, in terms of how the war-ravaged territory will be governed and disarming militants.
"You can't set up a government structure in Gaza that's not Hamas in three days. I mean, it takes some time," Rubio told NBC.
Trump told CNN he expected clarity "soon" on whether the Palestinian group that carried out the deadly October 7, 2023, attack on Israel that triggered the conflict was committed to peace.
The US president added that if Hamas were to refuse to cede power, they would face "Complete Obliteration!"
