Posted on 05/13/25
| News Source: JPost
The secret backchannel that led to the release of Edan Alexander began when a senior Hamas official abroad contacted Bishara Bahbah, a Palestinian-American businessman and political activist, according to two senior Israeli officials, a senior Palestinian official, and a senior American official.
This was the first step in a covert diplomatic effort involving multiple governments and intermediaries, according to the officials.
The senior Hamas figure reached out to Bahbah in April to initiate a channel to Trump’s Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff. Though slow to build traction, the effort accelerated last week, a senior Israeli official said.
Over the past two weeks, approximately 20 messages—comprising texts and phone calls—were exchanged through Bahbah. According to a source familiar with the matter, he also spoke directly with Hamas’s lead negotiator, Khalil al-Hayya. Bahbah declined to comment.
Witkoff, working alongside senior Qatari officials and relying heavily on Bahbah’s mediation, ultimately succeeded in persuading Hamas that releasing Alexander unconditionally would carry substantial benefit for Trump. Witkoff, however, did not engage in direct talks with Hamas during the two-week negotiation.