White House withdraws nomination for U.S. hostage envoy

By Nathan Layne and Humeyra Pamuk

(Reuters) -The Trump administration has withdrawn the nomination of Adam Boehler to serve as special presidential envoy for hostage affairs, the White House said on Saturday.

Boehler, who has been working to secure the release of hostages held by Hamas in Gaza, will continue hostage-related work as a so-called "special government employee," a position that would not need Senate confirmation.

"Adam Boehler will continue to serve President Trump as a special government employee focused on hostage negotiations," White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said in a statement.

"Adam played a critical role in negotiating the return of Marc Fogel from Russia. He will continue this important work to bring wrongfully detained individuals around the world home."

A White House official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Boehler withdrew his nomination to avoid divesting from his investment company. The move was unrelated to the controversy sparked by his discussions with the Palestinian militant group Hamas.

"He still has the utmost confidence of President Trump," said the official.

"This gives me the best ability to help Americans held abroad as well as work across agencies to achieve President Trump’s objectives," Boehler told Reuters in a brief statement.

Boehler recently held direct meetings with Hamas on the release of hostages in Gaza. The discussions broke with a decades-old policy by Washington against negotiating with groups that the U.S. brands as terrorist organizations.

The talks angered some Senate Republicans and some Israeli leaders. According to Axios, Israeli Minister of Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer expressed his displeasure to Boehler in a tense phone call last week.

Hamas carried out a cross-border raid into southern Israel on October 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people and taking 251 people hostage, according to Israeli tallies. Israel responded with an offensive into the Gaza Strip that has killed more than 48,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza health officials.

Boehler was given permission from the Trump administration to engage directly with Hamas, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said earlier this week, calling the talks a "one-off situation" that had not borne fruit.

Boehler has been credited with helping secure the release of Fogel, a U.S. schoolteacher who was freed by Russia in February after three and a half years in prison.

(Reporting by Nathan Layne in West Palm Beach and Humeyra Pamuk in Washington; Editing by Diane Craft and Daniel Wallis)