Emmy-Winning Soap Opera Actor Dies at 84NoneAn on-field interaction between a UW-Madison Police officer and a Nebraska football assistant coach after Saturday's game was a "misunderstanding" that ended in an apology, a police spokesperson said. Lt. Adam Boardman, one of the UWPD officers escorting University of Wisconsin coach Luke Fickell to the locker room amid fans rushing the field after a 44-25 Huskers victory, turned away to grab Nebraska offensive line coach Donovan Raiola by the arm, video posted to social media showed. That followed an apparent exchange of words between Raiola and Fickell and Badgers assistant offensive line coach Casey Rabach, who were walking in opposite directions. The context of the discussion wasn't apparent from the video, but Fickell and Raiola both pointed at the other, and Rabach later pointed at Raiola. Boardman and Raiola talked for about 15 seconds after Boardman pried Raiola away from a hug with Nebraska running backs coach EJ Barthel. UWPD spokesperson Marc Lovicott said it was a "misunderstanding amid a pretty chaotic scene." He said Boardman made contact with an "unknown individual who had approached" Badgers coaches as they were leaving the field. "Once it was confirmed that the individual was a member of the Nebraska coaching staff, the UWPD officer apologized for the misunderstanding," Lovicott wrote in an email Tuesday. "The interaction concluded cordially with a handshake." Lovicott said UW Police has made contact with counterparts at Nebraska "and they're also considering it a misunderstanding." Raiola played for Wisconsin from 2002 to 2005. "I don't want speculate without knowing, obviously Donny went to Wisconsin, so I don't know if there was some history there with somebody or something," said Nebraska coach Matt Rhule, who said he was shown video of the incident Monday. "When I asked Donny about it, he was like, 'No big deal.' Things happen after games and people are emotional, but he seemed to kinda brush it off." Fickell said he didn't know much about the interaction when he was asked about it at his weekly news conference Monday. "I mean, I don't know if he was talking to Casey, somebody said something, I don't know," Fickell said. "I just said it looked like maybe he said something to me, but I had no idea. And I had no idea that that was even something. So if it was, I didn't spend a whole lot of time thinking about it." — Lincoln Journal Star reporter Luke Mullin contributed to this report. Get local news delivered to your inbox!

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Tommy Fury opponent Genadij Krajevskij dies aged 37 as tributes pour inAfter a childhood marked by family violence, exposure to drug abuse and a school expulsion, a little boy received his first invitation to a birthday party. or signup to continue reading The 10-year-old, one of four siblings living with their mother in far west NSW, had found his first best friend. Despite their challenges, the family made the seven-hour trip to Manly, a beachside suburb in Sydney, to seek help at health service Royal Far West. The charity's clinicians treated the child's behavioural issues, care he would have waited years to access in his rural home town. Chief executive Jacqui Emery met the family in her first week in the job in 2021 and they became her beacon as she led the mission to care for one child at a time. "The mother said, 'You've saved our lives, you've saved his life," Ms Emery told AAP. "That's what we mean by one child at a time." The national charity, which connects rural and remote children with a variety of healthcare, will mark its centenary in December. Cobar-based reverend and carpenter Stanley Drummond founded the service in 1924, inspired by time he spent recovering from surgery at Manly Beach. It has always aimed to "go where the system stops", using developing technology to ensure no child or community is out of reach. Aviation pioneer Nancy Bird Walton flew nurses to remote outstations in her Gipsy Moth from 1935, while Sir Charles Kingsford Smith was a major donor. In its early days, the charity hosted seaside camps for children from outback NSW. When a group arrived in Manly on a rainy December day in 1948, a girl from Menindee was asked whether she brought the weather with her. "Her slightly sardonic reply was, 'There's no rain up there to bring'," The Sydney Morning Herald reported. An eight-year-old shearer's son successfully treated for a stutter in the 1950s was chosen to deliver Australia's message to the Queen in a BBC round-the-world Christmas broadcast. "I came down because I could hardly talk properly," the boy's message said. "Mummy, listen! I'm coming home. I can talk beaut now." Two decades later Queen Elizabeth II visited the organisation, granting its Royal title. The international recognition and ongoing backing from high-profile Australians is down to the charity's links to the heart of the country, Ms Emery said. "It's such an Australian story," she said. "It is about the outback and children that are more needy than others - that's always captured people." From the adoption of advances like splints to treat childhood hip disorders, swivel walkers and aeromedical services, Royal Far West was also an early user of telehealth in 2013. Video and telephone calls allowed city clinicians to stay in touch with rural patients, deliver programs to far-flung schools and expand into states outside NSW. The uptake of telehealth was due to greater understanding of developmental disorders, with country-born children twice as likely to be affected. "That leaves a bit of a legacy: it's been able to help much more broadly than just a one-to-one with a child." The charity is now working in a rapidly-changing world, as global warming dramatically fractures childhoods. Disaster recovery programs, like one rolled out to bolster the wellbeing of 3000 children after the Black Summer bushfires, will become even more significant in years to come. "We need to put the focus, the funding and the policies around these things right now," Ms Emery said. "It's really important to remember that children are often the silent victims." Advertisement Sign up for our newsletter to stay up to date. We care about the protection of your data. Read our . AdvertisementNone

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SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — In an era of rising authoritarianism, at the heels of a six-hour martial law decree that unfolded while many South Koreans slept, something noteworthy happened: Democracy held. The past week in Seoul, officials and academics warn, is what a threat to democracy looks like in 2024. It's a democratically-elected president declaring martial law over the nation he leads, asserting sweeping powers to prevent opposition demonstrations, ban political parties and control the media. It's members of the military attempting to block lawmakers from exercising their power to vote on cancelling the power grab. And here's what it took to defeat President Yoon Suk Yeol 's lurch toward government by force: Unified popular support for democracy. Legislators storming the National Assembly past midnight, live-streaming themselves climbing over fences. A politician grabbing at a soldier's rifle and yelling “Aren't you ashamed?” until he retreated. And finally, decisively, Parliament assembling a quorum and voting unanimously to cancel martial law. It was a victory for a hard-won democracy — and for the idea that checks and balances among branches of government must work to counteract each other's ambitions, as the American founders wrote in the Federalist Papers in 1788. But as the drama played out in Seoul, the scaffolding of democracy rattled around the world. In other countries, the grab for power might have worked. Other would-be authoritarians might have been better prepared than Yoon. In deeply polarized societies — the United States, for example, where Republicans are staunchly loyal to president-elect Donald Trump — there might not have been decisive support from the public or the opposition. The military might have used force. And the members of the legislature might not have voted as one to snuff out the attempted takeover. “President Yoon's attempt to declare martial law reveals the fragility of the rule of law in divided societies, especially those with governments in which the chief executive cannot be easily dismissed by the legislature," said Tom Pepinsky, a government professor at Cornell University who studies backsliding among democracies in Southeast Asia. Notably, he said in an email, “No members of President Yoon’s own party were willing to defend his actions in public." Nevertheless, Yoon’s surprise attempt to impose martial law revealed both the fragility and resilience of the country’s democratic system. Within three hours of his stunning announcement to impose military rule — claiming the opposition was “paralyzing” state affairs — 190 lawmakers voted to cancel his actions. In so doing, they demonstrated the strength of the country’s democratic checks and balances. Yoon’s authoritarian push, carried out by hundreds of heavily armed troops with Blackhawk helicopters and armored vehicles sent to the National Assembly, harked back to an era of dictatorial presidents. The country’s democratic transition in the late 1980s came after years of massive protests by millions that eventually overcame violent suppressions by military rulers. Civilian presence was again crucial in shaping the events following Yoon’s late night television announcement on Tuesday. Thousands of people flocked to the National Assembly, shouting slogans for martial law to be lifted and Yoon to step down from power. There were no reports of violent clashes as troops and police officers. “We restored democracy without having a single casualty this time,” said Seol Dong-hoon, a sociology professor at South Korea’s Jeonbuk National University. It’s virtually impossible for any leader of a democracy to pull off a transition toward martial law without a public willing to support it, or at least tolerate it. Opposition leader Lee Jae-myung, who narrowly lost to Yoon in the 2022 presidential election, attracted millions of views as he began live-streaming his journey to the National Assembly, pleading for people to converge to the parliament to help lawmakers get inside. The shaky footage later shows him exiting his car climbing over a fence to get onto the grounds. The vote at the National Assembly was also broadcast live on the YouTube channel of Assembly Speaker Woo Won Shik, who also had to scale a fence to get in. Yoon’s sense of crisis clearly wasn’t shared by the public, whose opinions, Seol said, were shaped predominantly by the shocking videos broadcast to their devices. “Ultimately, democracy is all about moving public opinion,” he said. “What was most crucial in this case was that everything was broadcast live on smartphones, YouTube and countless other media.” Opposition lawmakers are now pushing to remove Yoon from office, saying he failed to meet the constitutional requirement that martial law should only be considered in wartime or a comparable severe crisis — and that he unlawfully deployed troops to the National Assembly. On Saturday, an opposition-led impeachment motion failed after most lawmakers from Yoon’s party boycotted the vote. Yet the president’s troubles persist: The vote’s defeat is expected to intensify nationwide protests and deepen South Korea’s political turmoil, with opposition parties preparing to introduce another impeachment motion when parliament reconvenes next Wednesday. Han Sang-hie, a law professor at Seoul’s Konkuk University, said the martial law debacle highlights what he sees as the most crucial flaw of South Korea’s democracy: that it places too much power in the hands of the president, which is easily abused and often goes unchecked. Political scientists call what happened in South Korea an “autogolpe” — a “self-coup” — defined as one led by incumbent leaders themselves, in which an executive takes or sponsors illegal actions against others in the government. Yoon qualifies because he used troops to try to shut down South Korea's legislature. Self-coups are increasing, with a third of the 46 since 1945 occurring in the past decade, according to a study by researchers from Carnegie Mellon University and Penn State University. About 80% of self-coups succeed, they reported. In 2021, a power grab by Tunisian President Kais Saied raised similar concerns around the world after the country designed a democracy from scratch and won a Nobel Peace Prize after a largely bloodless revolution. In the United States, some have expresed worry about similar situations arising during the second administration of Donald Trump. He has vowed, after all, to shake some of democracy's pillars . He's mused that he would be justified if he decided to pursue “the termination of all rules, regulations, and articles, even those found in the Constitution.” That’s in contrast to the oath of office he took in 2017, and will again next year, to “preserve, protect and defend the Constitution” as best he can. Nearly half of voters in the Nov. 5 election, which Trump won, said they were “very concerned” that another Trump presidency would bring the U.S. closer to authoritarianism, according to AP Votecast survey data. Asked before a live audience on Fox News Channel in 2023 to assure Americans that he would not abuse power or use the presidency to seek retribution against anyone, Trump replied, “except for day one," when he'll close the border and “drill, drill, drill.” After that, Trump said, "I'm not a dictator.” Kellman reported from London.

The huge rally for US stocks lost momentum on Thursday as Wall Street counted down to a big jobs report that's coming on Friday. Bitcoin had powered for the first time the night before, after President-elect Trump chose Paul Atkins, who's seen as a crypto advocate, as his nominee to head the Securities and Exchange Commission. The cryptocurrency has climbed dramatically from less than $70,000 on Election Day, but it fell back as Thursday progressed toward $99,000, according to CoinDesk. Sharp swings for bitcoin are nothing new, the reports, and they took stocks of companies enmeshed in the crypto world on a similar ride. After rising as much as 9% in early trading, MicroStrategy, a company that's been raising cash just to buy bitcoin, swung to a loss of 4.8%. Crypto exchange Coinbase Global fell 3.1% after likewise erasing a big early gain. Elsewhere on Wall Street, stocks of airlines helped lead the way following the latest bumps up to financial forecasts from carriers. American Airlines Group soared 16.8% after saying it's making more in revenue during the last three months of 2024 than it expected, and it will likely make a bigger profit than it had earlier forecast. Southwest Airlines climbed 2% after saying it's seeing stronger demand from leisure travelers than it expected. It also raised its forecast for revenue for the holiday traveling season. On the losing end was Synposys, which tumbled 12.4%. The supplier for the semiconductor industry reported better profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected, but it also warned of "continued macro uncertainties" and gave a forecast for revenue in the current quarter that fell short of some analysts' estimates. American Eagle Outfitters fell 14.3%.

Circle Chart ( formerly known as Gaon Chart) has revealed its chart rankings for the week of November 24 to 30! TWS topped this week’s physical album chart with their new single album “ Last Bell ,” which debuted at No. 1. WayV’s new mini album “ FREQUENCY ” entered the chart at No. 2, while “ I-LAND 2 ” girl group izna’s debut mini album “ N/a ” followed at No. 3. Red Velvet ’s Irene ’s solo debut mini album “ Like A Flower ” entered the chart at No. 4, and NCT DREAM ’s latest album “ DREAMSCAPE ” climbed back up to No. 5 for the week. BIGBANG’s G-Dragon topped the download chart with his new single “ HOME SWEET HOME ” featuring Taeyang and Daesung , which rose to No. 1 this week. BTS ’s V ’s new single “ Winter Ahead ” with Park Hyo Shin debuted at No. 2, while the Korean version of WayV’s title track “ FREQUENCY ” debuted at No. 3. PLAVE’s “We don’t stop” (from the soundtrack of “The Fiery Priest 2”) stayed strong at No. 4, with Irene’s solo debut track “ Like A Flower ” entering the chart at No. 5. BLACKPINK ’s Rosé and Bruno Mars once again maintained their triple crown on the Circle charts, where their smash hit “ APT. ” topped the overall digital chart, streaming chart, and global K-pop chart for the sixth week in a row. G-Dragon’s “HOME SWEET HOME” shot to No. 2 on the overall digital chart this week, while his previous single “ POWER ” held steady at No. 4. aespa ’s “ Whiplash ” stayed strong at No. 3 on this week’s chart, with Hwang Karam’s “I’m Firefly” rising to No. 5. The top four songs on this week’s streaming chart and overall digital chart were exactly the same: Rosé and Bruno Mars’ “APT.” came in at No. 1, G-Dragon’s “HOME SWEET HOME” at No. 2, aespa’s “Whiplash” at No. 3, and G-Dragon’s “POWER” at No. 4. Finally, aespa’s Karina ’s solo song “UP” rounded out the top five for the week. Rosé and Bruno Mars’ “APT.” continued its reign at No. 1 on the global K-pop chart this week, while Rosé’s new pre-release single “ number one girl ” rose to No. 4. G-Dragon’s “HOME SWEET HOME” soared to No. 2 for the week, followed by aespa’s “Whiplash” at No. 3 and BTS’s Jin ’s “ Running Wild ” at No. 5. The top four artists on this week’s social chart remained exactly the same as last week: BLACKPINK remained No. 1, trailed by BABYMONSTER at No. 2, FIFTY FIFTY at No. 3, and BTS at No. 4. Finally, NewJeans rose to No. 5 for the week. Congratulations to all of the artists! Source ( 1 )487 Tons of NOx Emissions Reduced, 93% to Benefit Environmental Justice Areas DIAMOND BAR, Calif. , Dec. 6, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, the South Coast Air Quality Management District (South Coast AQMD) Governing Board approved more than $109 million to accelerate the development of zero-emission charging and hydrogen infrastructure. This funding will deliver heavy-duty electric chargers and hydrogen refueling stations along critical trade corridors, including the San Pedro Bay Ports and major freeways, with a strong focus on environmental justice communities. Once completed, the projects will reduce approximately 487 tons of smog-forming nitrogen oxides (NOx) and seven tons of particulate matter annually, improving air quality for the region's most impacted areas. Of the 30 projects, 12 are located within Assembly Bill (AB) 617 communities, with 93% of the emissions reductions directly benefiting underserved areas. Key infrastructure developments include 21 electric charging stations equipped with more than 800 connectors and fast chargers for heavy-duty trucks and seven hydrogen refueling stations, including a flagship location at California State University, Los Angeles , dedicated to workforce training and community education. "These investments provide critical support needed for heavy-duty vehicle fleet owners to embrace cleaner technologies," said Vanessa Delgado , South Coast AQMD's Governing Board Chair. "By prioritizing projects like these, we're not just addressing pollution, but also ensuring equitable access to the benefits of a zero-emission future." In December 2023 , South Coast AQMD launched a solicitation for zero-emission infrastructure proposals under its Carl Moyer Program and received nearly $400 million in applications, demonstrating the demand for zero emission heavy duty trucks and other equipment. Projects, in part, were selected based on their ability to deliver public access, cost-effectiveness and maximum impact on the South Coast Air Basin's air quality. Additionally, the initiative is fostering collaborations with school districts like Los Angeles Unified and Moreno Valley Unified to advance the adoption of zero-emission school buses. The California State University of Los Angeles hydrogen station will not only serve fuel cell vehicles but also educate and train the next generation on hydrogen technology. For more information on the awarded projects, please visit https://www.aqmd.gov/docs/default-source/Agendas/Governing-Board/2024/2024-dec6-004.pdf?sfvrsn=2 South Coast AQMD is the regulatory agency responsible for improving air quality for large areas of Los Angeles , Orange , Riverside and San Bernardino counties, including the Coachella Valley. For news, air quality alerts, event updates and more, please visit us at www.aqmd.gov , download our award-winning app, or follow us on Facebook , X (formerly known as Twitter) and Instagram . MEDIA CONTACT: Nahal Mogharabi , (909) 396-3773, Cell: (909) 837-2431 Connie Villanueva (909) 396-2409, Cell: (909) 215-5601 [email protected] SOURCE SOUTH COAST AQMDIndiana encouraged by 'total team effort' with Miami (OH) up next

Amidst Rising Tensions: Israel and Palestine Explore Ceasefire ProspectsFacing a budget shortfall of $10 billion or more, Democratic leaders in the state Legislature are already talking about potentially raising taxes to forestall cuts to government services. But Gov.-elect Bob Ferguson says he's not ready to back tax increases just yet. In an interview with The Seattle Times at a North Seattle coffee shop Thursday — his first extensive sit-down since winning the gubernatorial race — Ferguson said he's scouring state government looking for ways to cut spending before considering taxes. "We are looking at savings, efficiencies, how we can do better as a state. That's the first, second and third conversation as far as I am concerned, before even entertaining anything else," Ferguson said. Ferguson, who arrived for the hourlong interview without any entourage, also emphasized he's serious about his campaign promise to hire more police throughout the state and said he's carefully planning for how to respond to the incoming administration of President-elect Donald Trump on issues including the promised use of the military in mass deportations. The 59-year-old Democrat who has served as attorney general since 2013 defeated Republican opponent Dave Reichert in the Nov. 5 election, winning 55.5% of the vote. Since then, he's appointed a 53-member transition team of union, tribal and business leaders, Democratic and Republican legislators and others, asking them for recommendations for an agenda focused on his first 100 days as governor. The transition team includes a subcommittee asked to look for ways to reduce state spending, co-chaired by state Sen. Mark Mullet, D-Issaquah, who battled with Ferguson in the gubernatorial primary, and Rachel Smith, CEO of the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce. "We do not have a subcommittee on revenues," Ferguson said. "Specifically at the transition team, I made clear that's not a part of the conversation." Ferguson's cost-cutting exercise is no declaration of a desire to deeply slash government like Trump's "Department of Government Efficiency" effort at the federal level, headed by entrepreneurs Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy. Still, Ferguson said he's been doing his homework on state government, studying the dozens of state agencies he'll soon lead — and even questioning whether all of them should exist. "There is an agency — not the biggest agency in the world, but I was like, 'Why do we have this agency?' " Ferguson said he thought after looking at descriptions of one state office. He declined to identify the agency but said he called two of his top aides and asked them to contact the office and get "a better explanation of why they exist" and whether they can get by with "far, far fewer employees." A transition spokesperson also declined to identify the agency Ferguson was referring to in response to follow-up questions. Ferguson said he hasn't made any decisions on the future of that agency or others. But despite being the latest in a four-decade run of Democratic governors, he insists he's willing to rock the status quo in the Capitol, as he did in the 2000s when he sided with Republicans as a Metropolitan King County Council member and cut the size of the council from 13 to nine members. "For me, there is not some sacred cow," he said. Ferguson cautioned he's not ruling out tax increases and acknowledged Democratic lawmakers will have their own proposals he may have to grapple with. Some top state House and Senate Democrats have publicly signaled they'll pursue additional taxes, emboldened by the November election results in which voters mostly rejected a slate of antitax initiatives, while also handing Democrats every statewide elected office and slightly larger legislative majorities. One option being floated is a tax on high salaries paid by large corporations, similar to Seattle's JumpStart tax. Another is a "wealth tax" on the richest state residents. "I am looking at a lot of options that check the box of meeting community needs while also making the tax code more progressive," said state Sen. Noel Frame, D-Seattle, vice-chair for finance on the state Ways and Means Committee, in an interview confirming those options and others will be examined by lawmakers who want to preserve programs such as expanded child care subsidies. Frame said she and state Rep. My-Linh Thai, D-Newcastle, will again introduce their wealth tax proposal targeting stocks and bonds and other financial assets of the very wealthy, which has been proposed for the past two sessions but did not advance. In the interview, Ferguson declined to say whether he would support or oppose that proposal or others suggested by other legislators. The state faces a budget shortfall between expected revenues and expenses of between $10 billion and $12 billion over the next four years, driven by tax revenues coming in below recent high-water marks and by decisions from majority Democrats to boost spending on an array of programs. Outgoing Gov. Jay Inslee recently imposed a freeze on state hiring and nonessential contracts and travel in response to the looming deficit. Inslee will offer his final budget plan Dec. 17 before leaving office in January. In the interview, Ferguson also was noncommittal on some top legislative priorities of progressive Democrats and their allies, which may wind up on his desk for a signature or veto in the next several months. That includes a bill giving striking workers access to unemployment benefits, which passed the state House last year. "I will carefully consider it if the Legislature passes it. I made no commitment on that to anybody," he said. Similarly, Ferguson didn't commit in the interview to supporting a bill to cap annual rent increases — another proposal that passed the state House last year but died in the Senate. However, he has directed his transition team's housing subcommittee, led by Lt. Gov. Denny Heck, to come up with a recommendation on "a balanced law that prohibits predatory rent increases." During his gubernatorial campaign, Ferguson promised to reverse a slide in police hiring in the state, which for more than a decade has ranked dead last in the country for officers per capita. He pledged a $100 million grant program to help cities and counties recruit more officers. That promise, featured in multiple TV ads, drew derision from Ferguson's political rivals, who pointed out he had not made police hiring a priority during his dozen years as attorney general. But in the interview, Ferguson said he's determined to follow through as governor. He won't be satisfied with merely proposing a plan and then walking away. "We are really going to do this," he said, saying he's told legislative leaders "it's going to need to happen." As he faces tough issues in Washington state, Ferguson will also have to contend with a second Trump administration, and another subgroup of his transition committee has been asked for ways to prepare for the "Project 2025" agenda from Trump allies, including mass deportations. Ferguson, who sued the first Trump administration nearly 100 times as attorney general, said he's asked for careful legal briefings on the extent and limits of the federal government's authority, including the potential use of the National Guard in mass deportations. Ferguson said he has "no problem" with deportations of "individuals who are criminals" under existing policies and law, and acknowledged the president has broad legal authority on immigration. But he said he's preparing for if Trump pushes past legal boundaries. "Our job is to make sure that the federal government is adhering to the law when carrying out any activity that impacts Washingtonians," he said. Ferguson is scheduled to be sworn in as governor Jan. 15, two days after the 2025 Legislature convenes. ___ (c)2024 The Seattle Times Visit The Seattle Times at www.seattletimes.com Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.JERUSALEM/CAIRO, Dec 12 (Reuters) - Israelis and Palestinians are signaling new efforts to forge a ceasefire deal, even a limited one, for the first time in a year that would pause the fighting in Gaza and return to Israel some of the hostages still held in the Palestinian enclave. Israel Defence Minister Israel Katz told his U.S. counterpart Lloyd Austin in a phone call on Wednesday there was now a chance for a new deal that would allow the return of all the hostages, including U.S. citizens, Katz's office said. A Western diplomat in the region, however, said a deal was taking shape, but it would likely be limited in scope, involving the release of only a handful of hostages and a short pause in hostilities. Such a truce and release would be only the second since the start of the war in October 2023. The guarded optimism emerges as U.S. President Joe Biden's national security adviser Jake Sullivan heads to Israel for talks with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday and then to Egypt and Qatar, co-mediators with the U.S. on a deal. Separately, President-elect Donald Trump has demanded that militants of the Palestinian Hamas group release the hostages held in Gaza before he takes over from Biden on Jan. 20. Otherwise, Trump has said, there will be “hell to pay.” Trump's designated hostage envoy Adam Boehler has said he too is involved, having spoken already to Biden and to Netanyahu. Israel says 100 hostages remain captive in Gaza. Seven are believed to be U.S. citizens. Citing Trump's threat of "hell to pay," Boehler told Israel's Channel 13 news last week: "I would appeal to those people that have taken hostages: Make your best deal now. Make it now because every day that passes, it is going to get harder and harder and more Hamas lives will be lost." Although Biden and Trump are working separately, their efforts overlap and both stand to gain from a deal. A U.S. official said Trump's public statements about the need for a swift ceasefire “have not been harmful.” The official said the priority is to get the hostages home, whether it is at the end of the Biden term or the start of the Trump term. Steve Witkoff, Trump's designated Middle East envoy, met separately in late November with Netanyahu and Qatar's Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, said a source briefed on the talks. The timing for a deal may never have been better politically for Netanyahu. The prime minister told reporters on Monday that Hamas' increasing isolation following the collapse of Syrian President Hafez al-Assad's rule opened the door to a possible hostage deal even if it was too early to claim success. Israel's military chief and the head of the Shin Bet internal security service were in Cairo on Tuesday to discuss post-war Gaza border crossings and administration, according to three Israeli security sources. The public optimism of Israeli leaders over the past week has matched the general tone in internal discussions behind closed doors, according to an Israeli official. For Netanyahu, concessions would be far easier now with Israel having reestablished its reputation as the most powerful Middle East force and its Iran-backed enemies in Gaza, Lebanon and Syria now posing less of a threat. Netanyahu's once-fragile coalition has been strengthened by the addition of Foreign Minister Gideon Saar and his more centrist faction. Netanyahu, having achieved a ceasefire with Hezbollah in Lebanon, can complete the picture with the return of the hostages in a deal with Hamas. Over the past year, some of the far-right ministers in his cabinet had voiced objections, even threatening to bring down the government, should the war in Gaza end. But with Israel's enemies weakened, and his coalition strengthened, Netanyahu is far less vulnerable politically. Saar said on Monday that Israel was now more optimistic about a possible hostage deal amid reports Hamas had asked other Gaza factions to help it compile a list of Israeli and foreign hostages in their custody, whether dead or alive. A Palestinian official close to the talks and familiar with the positions of all the parties involved described what he called "a fever of negotiations" with ideas emerging on all sides, including among mediators in Egypt and Qatar. Trump's involvement had given the talks a boost, even if the sides have yet to present lists of Palestinian prisoners and hostages to be exchanged or to complete plans for a temporary or phased truce, the Palestinian official said. He said Hamas was willing to show some flexibility should there be guarantees Israel would not resume the fighting. It is unclear how the sides can bridge the largest gap that has persisted through numerous rounds of failed negotiations; Hamas demands an end to the war, while Israel says the war will not end before Hamas no longer rules Gaza. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken headed to Jordan and Turkey on Wednesday for talks on Syria, the State Department said. Israel is not in his official itinerary but there is always a possibility he might add the stop. Sign up here. Reporting by Maayan Lubell in Jerusalem and Nidal al-Mughrabi in Cairo; Additional reporting by Steve Holland, Andrew Mills and Humeyra Pamuk; Writing by Howard Goller; Editing by Daniel Wallis Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles. , opens new tab Thomson Reuters A senior correspondent with nearly 25 years’ experience covering the Palestinian-Israeli conflict including several wars and the signing of the first historic peace accord between the two sides.