A former Israeli official has offered a two-pronged strategy as "the only way" to free the remaining hostages captured by Hamas terrorists during the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks.

"Today, in my estimation, Israel must declare that it is no longer willing to negotiate as it has been. Then, it must do two things simultaneously," Yossi Amrusi, a former senior Shin Bet official, told Israeli outlet Maariv, a sister publication to The Jerusalem Post. 

"First, push as much as it can for separating Gazans from Hamas through designated humanitarian zones," he said. "That will also lead to control over humanitarian aid, so that it doesn’t reach Hamas. And second, since it is estimated that hostage locations are known – we must conduct local negotiations with those holding the hostages. Offer money and their lives in exchange for the hostages."

Amrusi argued that Hamas benefits from the prolonged negotiations and questioned whether anyone remaining in Gaza has the authority to make decisions. 

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"A clever Persian trader once told me in the market: ‘You’ll win the deal when you're willing to lose it.’ And why? For several reasons," he reportedly said. "One, Hamas benefits from dragging things out. It continues to hold the key to its survival, and in the meantime, who knows what could happen? European pressure, a false starvation campaign, Trump might flip on Israel, internal pressure on the government. All of these, and each on its own, are good for them."

He also voiced skepticism about Qatar's effectiveness as a negotiating party.  

"I’m not sure that Qatar, the mediator, even has the ability to decide anything. And it’s not even certain they have communication with Hamas’s internal leadership for consultations and decision-making," Amrusi said. "It’s important to ask: is there anyone in Hamas' Gaza who can make decisions? Who has control over those holding the hostages? Do they even know where they are, and what condition they’re in? After all, some of the hostages aren’t even in their hands."

"I’ve always said Hamas will release the hostages when we force them to release them," he continued, "but we don’t know how to do that. Military pressure isn’t being applied to its full extent, and our soldiers’ hands are pretty tied. We’re bringing in humanitarian aid that gives Hamas life – oxygen, fuel, and money."

"Government constraints and fears are holding back the opening of immigration offices and the establishment of humanitarian zones. We simply don’t know how to win," Amrusi added. 

The U.S. and Israel pulled their negotiating teams from Doha, Qatar, on Thursday. 

U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff said Friday that the decision came after Hamas' latest response "clearly shows a lack of desire to reach a ceasefire in Gaza."

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"While the mediators have made a great effort, Hamas does not appear to be coordinated or acting in good faith," Witkoff wrote on X. "We will now consider alternative options to bring the hostages home and try to create a more stable environment for the people of Gaza. It is a shame that Hamas has acted in this selfish way. We are resolute in seeking an end to this conflict and a permanent peace in Gaza." 

In a statement released by his office, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu echoed Witkoff, saying, "Hamas is the obstacle to a hostage release deal."

"Together with our U.S. allies, we are now considering alternative options to bring our hostages home, end Hamas’s terror rule, and secure lasting peace for Israel and our region," he said. 

Egypt and Qatar, which are mediating the talks alongside the United States, said the pause was only temporary and that talks would resume, though they did not say when.

Meeting with President Donald Trump at his golf course in Scotland on Monday, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer came determined to press the U.S. to take a larger role in helping quell what he called a "desperate situation" amid increasing reports of starvation in Gaza as the Israel-Hamas war rages. 

Trump at first lamented that the U.S. had not gotten enough credit for previously providing food aid. He shifted his tone when reporters questioned him about images of emaciated children from Gaza.

When asked if he agreed with Netanyahu’s recent remarks about concerns of mass starvation in Gaza being overstated, he replied, "I don’t know. I mean, based on television, I would say not particularly because those children look very hungry."

Starmer added, "I think people in Britain are revolted at seeing what they are seeing on their screens."

Trump said Israel "has a lot of responsibility" for what’s happening but is hampered by what its actions might mean for the prospects of Israeli hostages Hamas has been holding since it attacked Israel in 2023.

"I think Israel can do a lot," Trump said, adding of Netanyahu, "I want him to make sure they get the food." 

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Israel, meanwhile, has maintained that it is doing what it can to get humanitarian aid to Gazans. The country's foreign ministry shared a video on Tuesday of what it says is Hamas "violently looting" aid, keeping it from civilians. 

The foreign ministry also called out major media outlets for sharing an image of an emaciated Palestinian child, implying that the boy's condition is the result of starvation. Israel identified the boy as Osama al-Raqab, who suffers from cystic fibrosis. The ministry said Israel enabled him to go to Italy for treatment, while the media used his appearance to demonize the Jewish state.

"This is what a modern blood libel looks like," the ministry said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Pedro Pascal and Vanessa Kirby, whose recent flirtatious behavior towards one another has raised eyebrows, are just two of Hollywood's mega-stars who have sparked romance rumors from handsy, red-carpet appearances. 

From gentle neck rubs to hand-holding, the superhero power couple — who play Reed Richards/Mr. Fantastic and Sue Storm/The Invisible Woman in the Marvel film, "The Fantastic Four: First Steps" — have been noticeably touchy with one another while promoting the movie. 

But Pascal, who recently admitted physical touch helps him cope with anxieties, said there's nothing more to it.

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"I was always one to reach out when I’m facing something that is challenging or making me anxious," the actor, 50, told Men's Health. 

Kirby also defended her co-star's actions. Recalling the time in which Pascal caught heat after grabbing her hand during an appearance at Comic Con last year, Kirby told Vanity Fair the gesture was innocent. 

"What happened is we were both incredibly nervous going out in front of thousands of people who love this comic," Kirby said. "He wanted me to know that we were in this together, and I found it a lovely gesture and was very glad to squeeze his hand back."

However, Doug Eldridge, founder of Achilles PR, said stars often use this tactic as a way to create buzz. 

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"Nine times out of 10, this tactic is used as a buzz-builder, whether for the studio that financed the film, or the actors themselves, especially if the latter are up-and-comers, who haven't developed household name recognition yet. But again, there is always the '10th time' which could bring skepticism and, more importantly, scrutiny."

"Pascal uses touch as a 'grounding' technique to navigate social situations, which might otherwise trigger his anxiety. Skeptics claim that's a farce, but clinical professionals have acknowledged the validity of this technique," Eldridge continued. "Wherever you fall on this particular case, the real 'winner' is the studio, as the internet has been filled with clicks and commentary surrounding Pascal, all of which creates a groundswell of buzz and potential 'butts in the buckets' for the upcoming release of ‘The Fantastic Four’ re-make."

Steve Honig, founder of The Honig Company, told Fox News Digital that it's common for stars to use their on-screen and off-screen chemistry to their advantage during the promotional period of their upcoming project. 

"There are many ways co-stars can show chemistry on the red carpet without crossing the line into something that might be construed as inappropriate. The key here is to keep it fun and light, not sexual or anything heavy," Honig said. "At the end of the day, a red carpet is a place of work for actors, so the general rule of thumb is to not do anything a ‘civilian’ shouldn’t do in their workplace."

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"Oftentimes, the intent of red carpet PDA is to generate some additional buzz for the film," he continued. "This can, however, easily backfire and generate negative press about the questionable behavior. Red carpets are great stomping grounds for celebrities to build their brands, and they should use premieres and other red carpet events to that end."

"Celebrities, and their reps, need to remember that, unlike Las Vegas, what happens on the red carpet does not always stay on the red carpet," he added. "What happens at a premiere can, and often does, have a huge and lasting impact not only on the specific project but a celebrity’s overall image. This can spill over to other projects, endorsements and either damage or build a celebrity’s brand."

Last month, Scarlett Johansson spoke out after her red carpet kisses with her "Jurassic World Rebirth" co-star Jonathan Bailey went viral.

The 40-year-old actress and 37-year-old actor made headlines after locking lips at their film's premiere in London on June 17. On June 23, the two shared another kiss at "Jurassic World Rebirth's" premiere in New York City, where Johansson's husband, "Saturday Night Live" star Colin Jost, was in attendance. 

During a recent episode of "Today," host Craig Melvin told Johansson that he wanted to ask her about "this kissing thing that you and Jonathan have been doing all over the world." 

Melvin went on to note that Bailey was "so attractive," to which Johansson responded, "Yeah, you said it!" 

"Is that why we keep planting lips on him?" Melvin asked.

"He’s a lovable guy, what can I say?" Johansson replied. "I don't know. We're just friendly people."

When Melvin asked whether she was surprised by the public attention to the pair's kisses, Johansson told him, "Nothing surprises me, you know what I mean?" 

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"Nothing surprises me these days," she continued. "But, yeah, I’ve got a lot of love to give, what can I say?"

In 2023, Sydney Sweeney and Glen Powell, who starred together in "Anyone But You," sparked romance rumors as fans caught glimpses of the two filming. At the time, the duo appeared on the "Today" show to promote the film and their friendship was questioned by Hoda Kotb, who asked if there was "a little romance" going on at any point.

Throughout the interview, Sweeney and Powell shared little looks, and the "Euphoria" star couldn't stop giggling.

While Sweeney laughed in response to the question about their relationship status, Powell answered: "No, but we do love each other. And, honestly, this is one of the most spectacular humans I’ve ever met. She’s really great."

In September 2021, Oscar Isaac and Jessica Chastain were the stars of a viral video from their appearance at the Venice International Film Festival in 2021 to promote their show "Scenes From a Marriage," where fans noted the pair seemed to be a little too comfortable with each other. 

In the viral video, the two were posing with their arms around each other for photos. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary until Isaac appeared to kiss and sniff Chastain's underarm area. Isaac spoke on SiriusXM's "The Jess Cagle Show" at the time and offered an explanation for the odd sniffing by comparing himself and Chastain to flatworms. 

"You know, you can cut them into like a hundred pieces and they will grow a whole new worm out of the little piece. So they're basically kind of immortal, and they've been doing work at the cellular level where they're seeing that the cells kind of talk to each other through electricity and kind of decide, ‘Okay you're going to make the head.' ‘All right, I’m going to make the tail'…they're communicating through some sort of electro kind of magnetic situation," Isaac explained. 

"Maybe we should use more actual human language to talk instead of sniffing an armpit and doing things like that," Isaac said. "That's kind of what starts to happen and no matter how much we annoy each other, no matter what happens, it's like, when you get us together, it's like, it's just other stuff that's going on that is making us grow two heads." 

While Eldridge said the public displays of affection during press are "seldom authentic," some are truly genuine. 

"It is seldom authentic, but a good rule of thumb is to stay away from terms like 'always' and 'never.' Point being, Kurt Russell and Goldie Hawn have been together since 1983. Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson have been married for 40 years. Freddie Prinze Jr. and Sarah Michelle Geller have been married for 22 years. Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis have been married for 10 years. Improbable and impossible are not the same thing. Just because 'most' of these relationships are manufactured, doesn't mean 'all' of them are."

"It's not a question of good or bad [press], but rather inevitable," he said. "The purpose of organizing a global media junket is to drive ticket sales, but the formula is slightly more calculated than the target outcome. Again, the process is simple, not easy: build awareness, create interest/intrigue, generate a call to action."

Fox News Digital's Lauryn Overhultz contributed to this report.