Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy has met Israel’s prime minister in an effort to secure a ceasefire deal in Gaza before the president-elect takes office on 20 January.

Benjamin Netanyahu’s office confirmed details of the meeting with Steve Witkoff on Saturday, adding that the head of the Israeli Mossad intelligence agency has been deployed to Qatar in order to “advance” talks.

It was not immediately clear when David Barnea would travel to Doha for the latest round of indirect discussions between Israel and Hamas.

Earlier on Saturday, an Israeli official said some progress had been made, mediated by Egypt, Qatar and the United States, to reach a deal in Gaza.

The mediators are making renewed efforts to halt fighting in Gaza and free the remaining Israeli hostages held there before Mr Trump takes office.

A deal would also involve the release of some Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails.

Families of Israeli hostages welcomed Mr Netanyahu’s decision to dispatch the officials, with the Hostages and Missing Families Forum Headquarters describing it as a “historic opportunity”.

Mr Witkoff arrived in Doha on Friday and met the Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, Qatar’s foreign ministry said.

Egyptian and Qatari mediators received reassurances from Mr Witkoff that the US would continue to work towards a fair deal to end the war soon, Egyptian security sources said, though no further details were released.

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Israel launched its assault on Gaza after Hamas fighters stormed across its borders in October 2023, killing 1,200 people and taking more than 250 hostages, according to Israeli figures.

Families of the roughly 100 hostages still held in Gaza are pressing Mr Netanyahu to reach a deal to bring their loved ones home.

Since then, more than 46,000 people have been killed in Gaza, according to Palestinian health officials, with much of the area destroyed and gripped by a humanitarian crisis, with most of its population displaced.

Pope Francis has been honoured with America’s highest civilian award by President Joe Biden, who has described the pontiff as “a light of faith, hope, and love that shines brightly across the world”.

It is the first time Mr Biden, 82, has given the Presidential Medal of Freedom with Distinction during his four years in office.

In a statement, the White House said the award is “presented to individuals who have made exemplary contributions to the prosperity, values, or security of the United States, world peace, or other significant societal, public or private endeavours”.

Mr Biden had been scheduled to present the medal to Pope Francis, 88, in person on Saturday in Rome on what was to be the final overseas trip of his presidency. But the president cancelled his visit to monitor the California wildfires.

The White House said Mr Biden bestowed the award during a phone call in which they also discussed efforts to promote peace and alleviate suffering around the world.

The award can be presented with or without distinction.

Mr Biden presented the medal of freedom – without distinction – on 5 January to several people including fellow Democrat Hillary Clinton, humanitarian and U2 singer Bono, fashion designer Ralph Lauren and actors Michael J Fox and Denzel Washington.

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Mr Biden himself is a recipient of the award with distinction, recognised when he was vice president by then president Barack Obama in a surprise ceremony eight years ago.

The citation for the pope’s honour said his “mission of serving the poor has never ceased”.

“A loving pastor, he joyfully answers children’s questions about God. A challenging teacher, he commands us to fight for peace and protect the planet. A welcoming leader, he reaches out to different faiths,” it added.

And so now it is certain. Alice Weidel will lead her far-right party into Germany’s general election next month.

She was overwhelmingly backed at the Alternative for Germany (AfD) conference and was greeted with a standing ovation.

Weidel will fight the election with a manifesto that follows a familiar pattern from other successful populist campaigns in Europe and beyond – contempt for mainstream politicians, anger over levels of irregular immigration, a desire to rein in the power of the European Union and dismay over the spread of so-called woke values.

“Thank you for your trust,” she told the audience.

“I am excited to lead our campaign. For our people, for our future.”

Who is Weidel?

Weidel is an unusual figure to lead a German hard right-wing party – a gay woman with a PhD in economics, a Sri Lankan partner, two children and a home in another country – she commutes from Switzerland.

Admittedly there is an awkward history – her grandfather was a Nazi judge appointed to the job personally by Adolf Hitler, but she has maintained that she did not know that fact growing up and has angrily distanced herself from accusations of racism.

Indeed, Ms Weidel maintains that her party is not on the far right, but is simply conservative.

And that is part of her attraction – she is perceived as uncompromising on the things that the AfD’s supporters hold dear – migration, Euroscepticism, the greatness of German culture – but she’s also perceived as more palatable to the wider public.

Or, at least, that’s the idea.

Thousands of protesters

Outside the sports centre, where the AfD’s convention was being held, thousands of protesters gathered to raise their fears that the country was going back to the politics of the past.

“They are fascists,” said a man called Gabriel, who was helping to blockade the road that ran past the venue.

“I don’t know if we have learnt anything in the past hundred years but now we do have to stand against fascism.”

Many of the delegates would angrily decry that label.

However, there was a rousing reception for Bjorn Hocke, a long-standing AfD politician who is from the right wing of this right-wing party.

His grouping, Der Flugel, was declared a suspected extremist organisation but he remained the party’s leader in Thuringia.

In 2019, a court ruled that it was not libellous to refer to Hocke as a fascist.

He has twice been found guilty of using Nazi slogans but last year, under his leadership, the AfD won the state election.

Emotions often run high when the AfD is involved. The protests here were, at times, heated.

Police had to clear the road in front of Ms Weidel’s car as some protesters sat down and others began to surround it.

Later, the party’s MPs were called to gather together for a sudden security briefing.

The sports centre where this meeting was held once hosted the World Sumo Wrestling Championship.

Here, the heavyweights were political, and the prize at stake was far more consequential.

Barring a quite astonishing movement in the polls, the AfD is unlikely to win the election next month, but the party may well come second with more than 20% of the vote.

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That probably won’t equate to power – Germany’s major parties have all said they won’t go into coalition with the AfD – but it will mean momentum.

It will mean a loud voice in the Bundestag, the German federal parliament, and the ability to pressure the next chancellor into reflecting the opinions of the millions who vote for Ms Weidel’s vision.

Long term, if Ms Weidel can prove that her party is palatable, as well as popular, then she knows the political dam will one day break.

If enough people back the AfD, it will eventually become impossible to shun the party forever.