Steve Witkoff, President Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy, said on Wednesday that he welcomed the potential for “a dialogue” with Hamas and heaped praise on Qatar for helping facilitate the cease-fire deal between Israel and Gaza, despite facing scrutiny for previous ties to the Gulf nation.

Steve Witkoff detailed how implementing the recent ceasefire deal reached between Israel and the Hamas terrorist group could be “more difficult” than reaching it to begin with. The six-week ceasefire deal only just went into effect on Sunday,

( JTA) — Family members of Israelis held hostage in Gaza appeared onstage with President Donald Trump during a post-inauguration rally in Washington, D.C., on Monday. They were joined by Noa Argamani, a former hostage who was freed by the Israeli army in June.

We had a great team, but it doesn't happen without Donald Trump…The president was responsible for this release, and we all owe him a debt of gratitude, as to all the families,” Witkoff said.