Unprecedented direct talks between the U.S. and Hamas are a sign of dysfunction in fraught negotiations to prolong a truce in Gaza, analysts said Thursday.
Washington revealed it held talks with Hamas, which it designates as a "terrorist" organization, amid a standoff between Israel and the Palestinian militant group over how to proceed with the ceasefire, whose first phase expired last weekend.
The direct contact is "a sign of a breakdown in mediation for a wider ceasefire," geopolitics expert Neil Quilliam said, calling the move "symptomatic" of U.S. President Donald Trump's "impatience with complex and timely negotiations".
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