White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed on Wednesday an Axios report that the Trump administration is holding direct negotiations with Hamas, The Hill has reported.

This is an unprecedented move by the United States, which has never before held direct talks with Hamas, which Washington declared as a terrorist organization in 1997, according to The Times of Israel.

Leavitt told reporters that “when it comes to the negotiations… the special envoy who’s engaged in those negotiations does have the authority to talk to anyone,” The Hill reported.

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