White House says Israel, Hamas hostage deal closer than before

15 DAYS AGO

(This Nov. 21 story has been corrected to say people instead of civilians in paragraph 7) Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday asked his government to accept a deal for Palestinian Hamas militants to free some hostages in Gaza in exchange for a multi-day truce even as the death of a hostage in captivity was announced.

A flare falls over Gaza, as seen from southern Israel, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas, November 20, 2023. REUTERS/Alexander Ermochenko

Protesters hold placards of Israeli child hostages outside the Tel Aviv offices of Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF), in Tel Aviv, Israel, November 20, 2023. REUTERS/Joseph Campbell

Medics transfer a premature Palestinian baby in an incubator, evacuated from Gaza to an ambulance on the Egyptian side of the Rafah border, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, in Rafah, Egypt November 20, 2023 in this handout picture, courtesy of the Egyptian Health Ministry. The Egyptian Health Ministry/Handout via REUTERS

Israel's military transports Palestinian detainees from the Gaza Strip, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, near Israel's border with Gaza, in southern Israel, November 20, 2023. REUTERS/Yossi Zeliger

A man looks at weapons and military equipment, as Israeli military say were used by Hamas gunmen from the Gaza Strip during the deadly October 7 attack, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, at Tzrifin military base in central Israel November 20, 2023. REUTERS/Ammar Awad

A Palestinian man walks in a damaged building after Israeli forces raided Jenin refugee camp in the Israeli-occupied West Bank November 19, 2023. REUTERS/Raneen Sawafta

Smoke rises after Israeli air strikes in Gaza, as seen from southern Israel, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas, November 21, 2023. REUTERS/Alexander Ermochenko

A person stands in front of pictures during a demonstration to demand the liberation of hostages who are being held in the Gaza Strip after they were seized by Hamas gunmen on October 7, in Tel Aviv, Israel November 21, 2023. REUTERS/Amir Cohen

A mourner reacts during the funeral of Captain Arnon Moshe Avraham Benvenisti Vaspi, 26, an Israeli reserve soldier who was killed in the Gaza Strip during Israel's offensive against the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, in Rosh Pina, Israel, November 21, 2023. REUTERS/Athit Perawongmetha

People hold signs during a demonstration held to demand the liberation of hostages who are being held in the Gaza Strip after they were seized by Hamas gunmen on October 7, in Tel Aviv, Israel, November 21, 2023. REUTERS/Amir Cohen

Palestinians receive flour bags distributed by UNRWA in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, November 21, 2023. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa

A tank maneuvers near the border with Gaza in southern Israel, November 21, 2023. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun

Smoke rises after Israeli air strikes in Gaza, as seen from southern Israel, November 21, 2023. REUTERS/Alexander Ermochenko

Palestinians walk at the site of Israeli strikes on houses, in Jabalia refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip, November 21, 2023. REUTERS/Abed Sabah