In today’s edition, senior legal correspondent Laura Jarrett explores the key question that has lingered over Donald Trump’s legal proceedings this week. Plus, with the Ukraine aid package now passed, “Meet the Press” moderator Kristen Welker looks ahead to the next big fight facing Senate GOP leader Mitch McConnell.

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The central question hanging over Trump’s legal cases

By Laura Jarrett

In the midst of a high-stakes argument at the Supreme Court this week, Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson asked the lawyer for former President Donald Trump a piercing question: “If there’s no threat of criminal prosecution, what prevents the president from just doing whatever he wants?”

It’s a question that lingers over not only Trump’s criminal case in Washington — where a grand jury indicted him for attempting to overturn the 2020 election — but also in New York, where prosecutors are asking a judge to hold him in criminal contempt, because they argue he’s attacking potential trial witnesses.

Trump is under a court-imposed gag order that directs him not to comment on anyone who might testify at the trial, but he continues to post about witnesses online and hold forth in the hallways of the courthouse railing against his former fixer turned state’s witness.

Do you have a news tip? Let us know

So what’s a judge to do when faced with a defendant who also happens to be the presumptive GOP nominee for president? If the judge imposes a fine, as prosecutors have urged him to do, will the defendant stop? And if not, then what? In court this week the prosecution argued that Trump appears to be “angling” for incarceration — presumably to gain martyrdom status with his political base.

None of this is normal. And the judges overseeing Trump’s cases right now appear to feel the weight of the unusual circumstances they find themselves in.

Judge Juan Merchan in New York and Judge Tanya Chutkan in Washington, D.C., have both remarked at various points that, for the purposes of their cases, Trump should be treated like any other defendant. But he’s not any other defendant. And if he wins his immunity argument in the Supreme Court, shielding him from prosecution, then he truly enjoys rare status.

Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch, at oral argument Thursday in the election interference case, mused that everyone agrees “no man is above the law.” But the country’s legal system is being tested in an unprecedented way right now, and we’ll see if he’s correct.

Trump trial, Day 8: Longtime Trump assistant and bank executive each take the stand

By Adam Reiss, Gary Grumbach, Jillian Frankel and Dareh Gregorian

The prosecution moved onto its second witness in its case against Trump after former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker finished his testimony, which included attempts by defense attorneys to muddy his remarks about a joint scheme to benefit Trump’s 2016 campaign.

Pecker’s dramatic testimony was followed by two other witnesses, including Rhona Graff, Trump’s longtime assistant and gatekeeper, who said she was testifying pursuant to a subpoena.

Graff said she worked for the Trump Organization for 34 years and was responsible for maintaining Trump’s list of contacts and his calendar. People on the contacts list — which prosecutors have a copy of — included former Playboy model Karen McDougal and adult film star Stormy Daniels, Graff acknowledged. Both women have alleged that they had sexual relations with Trump in 2006 and received money to keep quiet about their claims during his 2016 presidential campaign. Trump has denied their claims.

The listing for McDougal included multiple phone numbers and addresses. The contact information for Daniels just said “Stormy” and included a cellphone number, Graff confirmed after their listings were shown in court.

Asked by prosecutor Susan Hoffinger if she’d ever seen Daniels in a reception area at Trump Tower, Graff said she had a “vague recollection” of that. Asked if she knew that Daniels was an adult film actress, Graff said, “Yes, I did.”

The final witness on Friday was Gary Farro, a bank executive who helped former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen set up the shell company he used to pay Daniels. Prosecutors are using his testimony to authenticate documents related to the transaction. His testimony will continue when the trial resumes on Tuesday morning.

Read a full recap of Day 8 of the Trump trial here →

Mitch McConnell’s next big fight

By Kristen Welker

Mitch McConnell has waged plenty of political battles in his decades as a senator — on campaign finance, against Barack Obama’s judicial picks, and, most recently, in support of aid to Ukraine in its war against Russia.

But the Kentucky Republican, who is stepping down as Senate GOP leader at the end of the year, sees an even bigger fight ahead for himself: the battle against isolationism inside his own party.

He teased it in this exchange with me for an interview that will air on “Meet the Press” this Sunday, when discussing his conversation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy after Congress approved more aid.

McConnell:
Well, he was grateful, because he knew that the big challenge was in my party. And I think he — it was nice of him to mention that we had a bigger vote than we did a couple months ago. I think there’s a growing feeling in the Republican conference in the Senate that the isolationist path is not a good idea.

And McConnell went into more detail later in the interview, telling me that, after he steps down as leader, he plans to spend his time fighting back against isolationism within the GOP.

The challenge for McConnell: The Republican nominee for president has espoused an “America First” foreign policy, which many GOP lawmakers have embraced.

Case in point: More House Republicans voted against additional aid to Ukraine than voted for it. And these are relatively newer members of Congress — of the 112 House Republicans who voted against Ukraine aid, more than 70 were elected after 2016. And in the Senate, 10 of the 15 Republicans who opposed the aid package were elected after 2016.

McConnell could be fighting an uphill battle, with Republican critics of funding Ukraine, like Sen. JD Vance of Ohio, suggesting this is the last aid package that will pass Congress.

I asked McConnell about this and much more in our interview Sunday on “Meet the Press.”

That’s all from The Politics Desk for now. If you have feedback — likes or dislikes — email us at [email protected]

And if you’re a fan, please share with everyone and anyone. They can sign up here
.

In today’s edition, senior legal correspondent Laura Jarrett explores the key question that has lingered over Donald Trump’s legal proceedings this week. Plus, with the Ukraine aid package now passed, “Meet the Press” moderator Kristen Welker looks ahead to the next big fight facing Senate GOP leader Mitch McConnell.

Sign up to receive this newsletter in your inbox every weekday here.

The central question hanging over Trump’s legal cases

By Laura Jarrett

In the midst of a high-stakes argument at the Supreme Court this week, Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson asked the lawyer for former President Donald Trump a piercing question: “If there’s no threat of criminal prosecution, what prevents the president from just doing whatever he wants?”

It’s a question that lingers over not only Trump’s criminal case in Washington — where a grand jury indicted him for attempting to overturn the 2020 election — but also in New York, where prosecutors are asking a judge to hold him in criminal contempt, because they argue he’s attacking potential trial witnesses.

Trump is under a court-imposed gag order that directs him not to comment on anyone who might testify at the trial, but he continues to post about witnesses online and hold forth in the hallways of the courthouse railing against his former fixer turned state’s witness.

Do you have a news tip? Let us know

So what’s a judge to do when faced with a defendant who also happens to be the presumptive GOP nominee for president? If the judge imposes a fine, as prosecutors have urged him to do, will the defendant stop? And if not, then what? In court this week the prosecution argued that Trump appears to be “angling” for incarceration — presumably to gain martyrdom status with his political base.

None of this is normal. And the judges overseeing Trump’s cases right now appear to feel the weight of the unusual circumstances they find themselves in.

Judge Juan Merchan in New York and Judge Tanya Chutkan in Washington, D.C., have both remarked at various points that, for the purposes of their cases, Trump should be treated like any other defendant. But he’s not any other defendant. And if he wins his immunity argument in the Supreme Court, shielding him from prosecution, then he truly enjoys rare status.

Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch, at oral argument Thursday in the election interference case, mused that everyone agrees “no man is above the law.” But the country’s legal system is being tested in an unprecedented way right now, and we’ll see if he’s correct.

Trump trial, Day 8: Longtime Trump assistant and bank executive each take the stand

By Adam Reiss, Gary Grumbach, Jillian Frankel and Dareh Gregorian

The prosecution moved onto its second witness in its case against Trump after former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker finished his testimony, which included attempts by defense attorneys to muddy his remarks about a joint scheme to benefit Trump’s 2016 campaign.

Pecker’s dramatic testimony was followed by two other witnesses, including Rhona Graff, Trump’s longtime assistant and gatekeeper, who said she was testifying pursuant to a subpoena.

Graff said she worked for the Trump Organization for 34 years and was responsible for maintaining Trump’s list of contacts and his calendar. People on the contacts list — which prosecutors have a copy of — included former Playboy model Karen McDougal and adult film star Stormy Daniels, Graff acknowledged. Both women have alleged that they had sexual relations with Trump in 2006 and received money to keep quiet about their claims during his 2016 presidential campaign. Trump has denied their claims.

The listing for McDougal included multiple phone numbers and addresses. The contact information for Daniels just said “Stormy” and included a cellphone number, Graff confirmed after their listings were shown in court.

Asked by prosecutor Susan Hoffinger if she’d ever seen Daniels in a reception area at Trump Tower, Graff said she had a “vague recollection” of that. Asked if she knew that Daniels was an adult film actress, Graff said, “Yes, I did.”

The final witness on Friday was Gary Farro, a bank executive who helped former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen set up the shell company he used to pay Daniels. Prosecutors are using his testimony to authenticate documents related to the transaction. His testimony will continue when the trial resumes on Tuesday morning.

Read a full recap of Day 8 of the Trump trial here →

Mitch McConnell’s next big fight

By Kristen Welker

Mitch McConnell has waged plenty of political battles in his decades as a senator — on campaign finance, against Barack Obama’s judicial picks, and, most recently, in support of aid to Ukraine in its war against Russia.

But the Kentucky Republican, who is stepping down as Senate GOP leader at the end of the year, sees an even bigger fight ahead for himself: the battle against isolationism inside his own party.

He teased it in this exchange with me for an interview that will air on “Meet the Press” this Sunday, when discussing his conversation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy after Congress approved more aid.

McConnell:
Well, he was grateful, because he knew that the big challenge was in my party. And I think he — it was nice of him to mention that we had a bigger vote than we did a couple months ago. I think there’s a growing feeling in the Republican conference in the Senate that the isolationist path is not a good idea.

And McConnell went into more detail later in the interview, telling me that, after he steps down as leader, he plans to spend his time fighting back against isolationism within the GOP.

The challenge for McConnell: The Republican nominee for president has espoused an “America First” foreign policy, which many GOP lawmakers have embraced.

Case in point: More House Republicans voted against additional aid to Ukraine than voted for it. And these are relatively newer members of Congress — of the 112 House Republicans who voted against Ukraine aid, more than 70 were elected after 2016. And in the Senate, 10 of the 15 Republicans who opposed the aid package were elected after 2016.

McConnell could be fighting an uphill battle, with Republican critics of funding Ukraine, like Sen. JD Vance of Ohio, suggesting this is the last aid package that will pass Congress.

I asked McConnell about this and much more in our interview Sunday on “Meet the Press.”

That’s all from The Politics Desk for now. If you have feedback — likes or dislikes — email us at [email protected]

And if you’re a fan, please share with everyone and anyone. They can sign up here
.

Lawsuit claims bodycam video shows officer assaulting woman who refused to show ID in her homeJonathan Limehouse, USA TODAYApril 26, 2024 at 4:33 PMA 40-year-old Alabama woman…

The allies named envoys last month to launch early talks for a new deal to take effect in 2026. South Korean media said the aim was for an agreement before any November election comeback by former President Donald Trump, who during his presidency accused Seoul of “free-riding” on U.S. military might.

Ahead of a first round of talks in Hawaii from Tuesday to Thursday on a so-called 12th Special Measures Agreement (SMA), chief U.S. negotiator Linda Specht said Washington was seeking “a fair and equitable outcome.”

In a brief statement on Friday, Specht said: “The United States and Republic of Korea outlined their respective visions for the 12th SMA … We will continue to consult whenever necessary to further strengthen and sustain the Alliance under the 12th SMA.”

A senior Biden administration official told Reuters last month the talks were on track and ahead of schedule but the U.S. did not see November as a “hard deadline.”

More than 28,000 American troops are stationed in South Korea as part of efforts to deter nuclear-armed North Korea.

South Korea began shouldering the costs of the deployment, used to fund local labor, the construction of military installations and other logistics support, in the early 1990s.

During Trump’s presidency, the sides struggled for months to reach a deal before Seoul agreed to increase its contribution by 13.9% over the previous 2019 pact under which Seoul had paid about $920 million annually. It was the biggest annual rise in nearly two decades.

Trump had demanded Seoul pay as much as $5 billion a year.

According to the U.S. Government Accountability Office, from 2016 through 2019, the U.S. Defense Department spent roughly $13.4 billion in South Korea to pay military salaries, construct facilities, and perform maintenance, while South Korea provided $5.8 billion to support the U.S. presence.

The current deal expires in 2025, with negotiations on a successor pact usually held just before the end of the existing one.

(Reporting by David Brunnstrom; Editing by Sandra Maler)

The allies named envoys last month to launch early talks for a new deal to take effect in 2026. South Korean media said the aim was for an agreement before any November election comeback by former President Donald Trump, who during his presidency accused Seoul of “free-riding” on U.S. military might.

Ahead of a first round of talks in Hawaii from Tuesday to Thursday on a so-called 12th Special Measures Agreement (SMA), chief U.S. negotiator Linda Specht said Washington was seeking “a fair and equitable outcome.”

In a brief statement on Friday, Specht said: “The United States and Republic of Korea outlined their respective visions for the 12th SMA … We will continue to consult whenever necessary to further strengthen and sustain the Alliance under the 12th SMA.”

A senior Biden administration official told Reuters last month the talks were on track and ahead of schedule but the U.S. did not see November as a “hard deadline.”

More than 28,000 American troops are stationed in South Korea as part of efforts to deter nuclear-armed North Korea.

South Korea began shouldering the costs of the deployment, used to fund local labor, the construction of military installations and other logistics support, in the early 1990s.

During Trump’s presidency, the sides struggled for months to reach a deal before Seoul agreed to increase its contribution by 13.9% over the previous 2019 pact under which Seoul had paid about $920 million annually. It was the biggest annual rise in nearly two decades.

Trump had demanded Seoul pay as much as $5 billion a year.

According to the U.S. Government Accountability Office, from 2016 through 2019, the U.S. Defense Department spent roughly $13.4 billion in South Korea to pay military salaries, construct facilities, and perform maintenance, while South Korea provided $5.8 billion to support the U.S. presence.

The current deal expires in 2025, with negotiations on a successor pact usually held just before the end of the existing one.

(Reporting by David Brunnstrom; Editing by Sandra Maler)

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WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Kristi Noem, a contender to become Republican Donald Trump’svice presidential running mate, defended herself on Friday against Democratic attacks over her account of shooting a dog on her family farm.

Noem, the governor of South Dakota, describes killing an “untrainable” dog called Cricket which she “hated” in an upcoming memoir, excerpts of which were first published by The Guardian on Friday. She also said she shot to death a goat.

Noem said the dog ruined a hunt and later attacked chickens owned by a local family, behaved like a “trained assassin,” and was “dangerous to anyone she came in contact with.”

“I realized I had to put her down,” Noem writes.

The Democratic National Committee seized on the excerpts, calling them “horrifying” and “disturbing” and tried to make a 2024 election argument about the shooting of the animals.

“If you want elected officials who don’t brag about brutally killing their pets as part of their self-promotional book tour, then listen to our owners – and vote Democrat,” the DNC said in a statement, giving voice to the dogs.

Responding on X, Noem said, “We love animals, but tough decisions like this happen all the time on a farm. Sadly, we just had to put down 3 horses a few weeks ago that had been in our family for 25 years.”

Noem is on a list of candidates being considered by Trump to be his vice presidential running mate, friends and allies of Trump have told Reuters. Trump faces a general election rematch with Democratic President Joe Biden on Nov. 5.

(Reporting by Tim Reid, editing by Ross Colvin and Sandra Maler)

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Kristi Noem, a contender to become Republican Donald Trump’svice presidential running mate, defended herself on Friday against Democratic attacks over her account of shooting a dog on her family farm.

Noem, the governor of South Dakota, describes killing an “untrainable” dog called Cricket which she “hated” in an upcoming memoir, excerpts of which were first published by The Guardian on Friday. She also said she shot to death a goat.

Noem said the dog ruined a hunt and later attacked chickens owned by a local family, behaved like a “trained assassin,” and was “dangerous to anyone she came in contact with.”

“I realized I had to put her down,” Noem writes.

The Democratic National Committee seized on the excerpts, calling them “horrifying” and “disturbing” and tried to make a 2024 election argument about the shooting of the animals.

“If you want elected officials who don’t brag about brutally killing their pets as part of their self-promotional book tour, then listen to our owners – and vote Democrat,” the DNC said in a statement, giving voice to the dogs.

Responding on X, Noem said, “We love animals, but tough decisions like this happen all the time on a farm. Sadly, we just had to put down 3 horses a few weeks ago that had been in our family for 25 years.”

Noem is on a list of candidates being considered by Trump to be his vice presidential running mate, friends and allies of Trump have told Reuters. Trump faces a general election rematch with Democratic President Joe Biden on Nov. 5.

(Reporting by Tim Reid, editing by Ross Colvin and Sandra Maler)

Shared bank accounts are convenient, but they can hinder your financial autonomy.

Tyler Wenrich was taken into custody after officials allegedly found two bullets in his backpack April 20 as he was about to board a cruise ship.

Possessing a gun or ammunition is prohibited in Turks and Caicos, but tourists were previously often able to just pay a fine. In February, however, a court order mandated that even tourists in the process of leaving the country are subject to prison time.

The Virginia EMT and father now faces the potential of a mandatory minimum prison sentence of up to 12 years.

“I feel like, as a very honest mistake, that 12 years is absurd,” his wife, Jeriann Wenrich, told CBS News Friday.

Wenrich says her husband had been on the island for less than a day when the arrest occurred.

“My son’s only 18 months old, and I just don’t want to him to grow up without a dad,” Wenrich said.

There are now at least four American tourists facing the possibility of lengthy prison sentences for similar charges, including a 72-year-old man, Michael Lee Evans, who was arrested in December and pled guilty to possession of seven rounds of ammo. He appeared before the court on Wednesday via a video conference link. Currently on bail in the U.S. for medical reasons, Evans has a sentencing hearing in June. A fifth person, Michael Grim of Indiana, served nearly six months in prison after he pleaded guilty to mistakenly bringing ammo in his checked luggage for a vacation.

Ryan Watson, a 40-year-old father of two from Oklahoma, was released from a Turks and Caicos jail on $15,000 bond Wednesday. Following a birthday vacation with his wife, he was arrested April 12 when airport security allegedly found four rounds of hunting ammo in his carry-on bag earlier this month.

His wife, Valerie Watson, flew home to Oklahoma Tuesday after learning she would not be charged. However, as part of his bond agreement, her husband must remain on the island and check in every Tuesday and Thursday at the Grace Bay Police Station while his case moves forward.

In an interview Friday from the island, Ryan Watson told CBS News that he checked the bag before he packed it.

“I opened it up and kind of give it a little shimmy, didn’t see anything, didn’t hear anything,” he said.

TSA also acknowledged that officers missed the ammo when Watson’s bag was screened at the checkpoint on April 7 at Will Rogers World Airport in Oklahoma City.

In a statement provided to CBS News Friday, a TSA spokesperson said that “four rounds of ammunition were not detected” in Watson’s bag “during the security screening.”

The spokesperson said that “an oversight occurred that the agency is addressing internally.”

“It was my mistake,” Ryan Watson said. “It was very innocent. And I just pray that, compassion and consideration, because there was zero criminal intent.”

In a statement Friday, the Turks and Caicos government said that it “reserves the right to enforce its legislation and all visitors must follow its law enforcement procedures.”

Following the CBS News report on Ryan Watson earlier this week, the State Department reissued a warning to American tourists traveling to Turks and Caicos to “carefully check their luggage for stray ammunition or forgotten weapons.”

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Tyler Wenrich was taken into custody after officials allegedly found two bullets in his backpack April 20 as he was about to board a cruise ship.

Possessing a gun or ammunition is prohibited in Turks and Caicos, but tourists were previously often able to just pay a fine. In February, however, a court order mandated that even tourists in the process of leaving the country are subject to prison time.

The Virginia EMT and father now faces the potential of a mandatory minimum prison sentence of up to 12 years.

“I feel like, as a very honest mistake, that 12 years is absurd,” his wife, Jeriann Wenrich, told CBS News Friday.

Wenrich says her husband had been on the island for less than a day when the arrest occurred.

“My son’s only 18 months old, and I just don’t want to him to grow up without a dad,” Wenrich said.

There are now at least four American tourists facing the possibility of lengthy prison sentences for similar charges, including a 72-year-old man, Michael Lee Evans, who was arrested in December and pled guilty to possession of seven rounds of ammo. He appeared before the court on Wednesday via a video conference link. Currently on bail in the U.S. for medical reasons, Evans has a sentencing hearing in June. A fifth person, Michael Grim of Indiana, served nearly six months in prison after he pleaded guilty to mistakenly bringing ammo in his checked luggage for a vacation.

Ryan Watson, a 40-year-old father of two from Oklahoma, was released from a Turks and Caicos jail on $15,000 bond Wednesday. Following a birthday vacation with his wife, he was arrested April 12 when airport security allegedly found four rounds of hunting ammo in his carry-on bag earlier this month.

His wife, Valerie Watson, flew home to Oklahoma Tuesday after learning she would not be charged. However, as part of his bond agreement, her husband must remain on the island and check in every Tuesday and Thursday at the Grace Bay Police Station while his case moves forward.

In an interview Friday from the island, Ryan Watson told CBS News that he checked the bag before he packed it.

“I opened it up and kind of give it a little shimmy, didn’t see anything, didn’t hear anything,” he said.

TSA also acknowledged that officers missed the ammo when Watson’s bag was screened at the checkpoint on April 7 at Will Rogers World Airport in Oklahoma City.

In a statement provided to CBS News Friday, a TSA spokesperson said that “four rounds of ammunition were not detected” in Watson’s bag “during the security screening.”

The spokesperson said that “an oversight occurred that the agency is addressing internally.”

“It was my mistake,” Ryan Watson said. “It was very innocent. And I just pray that, compassion and consideration, because there was zero criminal intent.”

In a statement Friday, the Turks and Caicos government said that it “reserves the right to enforce its legislation and all visitors must follow its law enforcement procedures.”

Following the CBS News report on Ryan Watson earlier this week, the State Department reissued a warning to American tourists traveling to Turks and Caicos to “carefully check their luggage for stray ammunition or forgotten weapons.”

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The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Israel had no new proposals to make, although it was willing to consider a limited truce in which 33 hostages would be released by the Islamist movement Hamas, instead of the 40 previously under discussion.

“There are no current hostage talks between Israel and Hamas, nor is there a new Israeli offer in that regard,” the official said. “What there is, is an attempt by Egypt to restart the talks with an Egyptian proposal that would entail the release of 33 hostages – women, elderly and infirm.”

According to Israeli media reports, Israeli intelligence officials believe there are 33 female, elderly and sick hostages left alive in Gaza, out of a total of 133 still being held by Hamas and other Palestinian militant groups.

There was no decision on how long any truce would last but if such an exchange were agreed, the pause in fighting would be “definitely less than six weeks”, the official said.

The visit by the Egyptian delegation came a day after the United States and 17 other countries appealed to Hamas to release all of its hostages as a pathway to end the crisis in Gaza. Hamas vowed not to relent to international pressure.

Hamas said it was “open to any ideas or proposals that take into account the needs and rights of our people”. However it stuck to central demands Israel has rejected, and said it criticised the statement for not calling for a permanent ceasefire and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza.

The visit by the Egyptian delegation followed Israeli media reports of a visit to Cairo on Thursday by the Israeli army chief, Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi, and Ronen Bar, the head of Shin Bet, Israel’s domestic intelligence service.

Egypt, concerned about a potential influx of Palestinian refugees from neighbouring Gaza if the war continues with the long-promised Israeli offensive into the southern city of Rafah, has taken an increasingly active role in the negotiations.

“The Egyptians are really picking up the mantle on this. Egypt wants to see progress, not least because it’s worried about a prospective Rafah operation,” the official said.

Israel was increasingly looking past Qatar as a main broker, according to the official, after it failed to respond to Israeli demands to expel Hamas leaders from its territory or curb their finances.

“Qatar is still involved but in a lesser capacity,” the official said. “It’s clear to everyone they failed to deliver, even when it came to expelling Hamas or even shutting down their bank accounts.”

However Hamas officials said they still considered Qatar a key mediator, alongside Egypt.

(Reporting by Dan Williams and Nidal al-Mughrabi in Cairo, writing by James Mackenzie, editing by Mark Heinrich and Alex Richardson)

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Israel had no new proposals to make, although it was willing to consider a limited truce in which 33 hostages would be released by the Islamist movement Hamas, instead of the 40 previously under discussion.

“There are no current hostage talks between Israel and Hamas, nor is there a new Israeli offer in that regard,” the official said. “What there is, is an attempt by Egypt to restart the talks with an Egyptian proposal that would entail the release of 33 hostages – women, elderly and infirm.”

According to Israeli media reports, Israeli intelligence officials believe there are 33 female, elderly and sick hostages left alive in Gaza, out of a total of 133 still being held by Hamas and other Palestinian militant groups.

There was no decision on how long any truce would last but if such an exchange were agreed, the pause in fighting would be “definitely less than six weeks”, the official said.

The visit by the Egyptian delegation came a day after the United States and 17 other countries appealed to Hamas to release all of its hostages as a pathway to end the crisis in Gaza. Hamas vowed not to relent to international pressure.

Hamas said it was “open to any ideas or proposals that take into account the needs and rights of our people”. However it stuck to central demands Israel has rejected, and said it criticised the statement for not calling for a permanent ceasefire and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza.

The visit by the Egyptian delegation followed Israeli media reports of a visit to Cairo on Thursday by the Israeli army chief, Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi, and Ronen Bar, the head of Shin Bet, Israel’s domestic intelligence service.

Egypt, concerned about a potential influx of Palestinian refugees from neighbouring Gaza if the war continues with the long-promised Israeli offensive into the southern city of Rafah, has taken an increasingly active role in the negotiations.

“The Egyptians are really picking up the mantle on this. Egypt wants to see progress, not least because it’s worried about a prospective Rafah operation,” the official said.

Israel was increasingly looking past Qatar as a main broker, according to the official, after it failed to respond to Israeli demands to expel Hamas leaders from its territory or curb their finances.

“Qatar is still involved but in a lesser capacity,” the official said. “It’s clear to everyone they failed to deliver, even when it came to expelling Hamas or even shutting down their bank accounts.”

However Hamas officials said they still considered Qatar a key mediator, alongside Egypt.

(Reporting by Dan Williams and Nidal al-Mughrabi in Cairo, writing by James Mackenzie, editing by Mark Heinrich and Alex Richardson)