Gali the mother of the Israeli soldier Sergeant Yahav Maayan who was killed in combat in the Gaza Strip, reacts next to his son's grave during his funeral at a military cemetery in Modiin, Israel, Sunday, Jan. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)2025-01-12T19:59:03Z DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. President Joe Biden spoke Sunday about efforts to reach a ceasefire and hostage release deal in the Israel-Hamas war, a sign of the intensifying push to reach a deal before Donald Trumps inauguration next week.Talks mediated over the past year by the United States, Egypt and Qatar have repeatedly stalled at moments when they seemed close to a deal. Still, in recent days, U.S. officials have expressed hope of sealing an agreement. Sundays call between Biden and Netanyahu came as the head of Israels Mossad foreign intelligence agency, David Barnea, and Bidens top Mideast adviser, Brett McGurk, were both in the Qatari capital Doha. Barneas presence, confirmed by Netanyahus office, meant high-level Israeli officials who would need to sign off on any agreement are now involved in talks. McGurk has been working on final details of a text to be presented to both sides, Bidens national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, told CNNs State of the Union. But he said he would not predict whether a deal can be reached by Jan. 20, the day of the inauguration. We are very, very close, he said. Yet being very close still means were far because until you actually get across the finish line, were not there.The White House and Netanyahus office both confirmed the phone call between the two leaders without providing details. Just one brief ceasefire has been achieved in 15 months of war, and that was in the earliest weeks of fighting. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said this week a deal is very close and he hoped to complete it before handing over diplomacy to the incoming Trump administration.Under discussion now is a phased ceasefire, with Netanyahu signaling he is committed only to the first phase, a partial hostage release in exchange for a weekslong halt in fighting. Hamas has insisted on a full Israeli troop withdrawal from the largely devastated territory, but Netanyahu has insisted on destroying Hamas ability to fight in Gaza.Issues in the talks have included which hostages would be released in the first part of a phased ceasefire deal, which Palestinian prisoners would be released and the extent of any Israeli troop withdrawal from population centers in Gaza.Israels campaign in Gaza has killed more than 46,000 Palestinians, the majority women and children, according to the territorys Health Ministry, whose count does not give a breakdown between fighters and civilians. Israels campaign was triggered by Hamas Oct. 7, 2023 attack, in which militants killed some 1,200 people and abducted around 250 others.Families of the roughly 100 hostages still held in Gaza are pressing Netanyahu to reach a deal to bring their loved ones home. Israelis rallied again Saturday night in the city of Tel Aviv, with photos of hostages on display.In Gaza, Palestinians were tempering their hopes for a stop to Israels campaign, which has devastated much of the territory and driven more than 80% of its 2.3 million people from their homes. We hear that there are negotiations every day, but we see nothing, said Mazen Hammad, a resident of the southern city of Khan Younis. When we see it on the ground, then we believe that there is a truce. ___Melzer reported from Nahariya, Israel.___Follow coverage of the war at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war RSShttps://feedx.net https://feedx.site