White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed Wednesday that the Trump administration is currently in direct negotiations with Hamas leaders to come to a deal for the release of American hostages presently who have been detained in the Gaza Strip for more than 500 days now.

“The special envoy who is engaged in those negotiations does have the authority to talk to anyone,” Ms. Leavitt said, referring to the U.S. presidential envoy for hostage affairs, Adam Boehler, during the daily press briefing when asked by a reporter about potential talks.

“Dialogue and talking to people around the world to do what’s in the best interest of the American people is something that the president has proven that he believes [in],” she said.

Ms. Leavitt declined to comment during follow-up questions about the substance of the talks and whether they included discussion of Mr. Trump’s ambitions to take over and rebuild the Gaza region after the war, saying only that discussion is “ongoing” and that there are “American lives at stake.”

News of the talks first surfaced on Axios, which reports that meetings between Mr. Bohler and Hamas officials have taken place behind closed doors in Doha in recent weeks and have focused, at least in part, on the release of American hostages. 

Sources close to the situation told the outlet that discussions of a broader deal to release all hostages and a long-term truce have also been discussed. In the past, the United States has refused direct talks with groups like Hamas which are officially designated as terrorist organizations.

Ms. Leavitt also confirmed that Israel was consulted before the talks began, but officials there say they learned of the negotiations “through other channels,” an unnamed source told Axios.