TASTE — The heads of the U.S. and Israeli intelligence services are scheduled to travel to Doha on Wednesday for talks on a ceasefire agreement. Loop between Hamas and Israel, a source familiar with the discussions said on Monday.
The heads of the INC, William Burns, and the Mossad Israeli Foreign Minister David Barnea “will travel to Doha on Wednesday,” the source said, adding that they will meet with Qatari Prime Minister Mohamed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani.
International mediators – Qatar, the United States and Egypt – have been negotiating behind the scenes for months to achieve a truce in Gaza and the release of the hostages held by Hamas.
Barnea was in Doha on Friday and upon his return, Israel announced that a delegation would return to Qatar this week. Egypt is also expected to hold meetings this week.
The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the talks in the Qatari capital focused on “the transition from an initial truce to a longer period of calm.”
According to a Palestinian official, Egyptian mediators are also expected to take part in the talks in Doha, where the Hamas terrorist group’s delegation will be led by Khalil al-Hayya.
The war in Gaza began after Hamas launched a deadly terrorist attack on Israel on October 7, which left more than 1,200 people dead and 250 kidnapped. More than 130 remain in the hands of the terrorists.
The conditions
Among the points of disagreement, the official cited the fact that Israel “vetoed the release of 100 Palestinian prisoners” in Israeli jails, “among them several senior leaders of Hamas, Fatah, Islamic Jihad and the Popular Front.”
Hamas, he added, “demanded that the mediators commit to a complete Israeli withdrawal from the Rafah terminal and the Philadelphia corridor,” located between southern Gaza and Egypt, “during the fifth week” of the ceasefire, if it were to come into effect.
“There are other points (…) linked to the return of displaced persons from the south of the Gaza Strip to Gaza City and to the north” of the Palestinian territory, he added.
The prospect of a cessation of hostilities in Gaza has been revolving for months around a gradual agreement worked out by mediators, which would begin with an initial truce.
A senior Hamas official said Sunday that his movement no longer demands a permanent ceasefire to begin negotiations on the release of Israeli hostages.
“At a time when Hamas is showing flexibility and positivity in facilitating the conclusion of an agreement (…) (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu continues to put new obstacles in the way of negotiations,” “intensifying his aggression” in Gaza, the terrorist group accused on Monday.
Netanyahu reiterates that he will continue the war until Hamas is destroyed and all hostages are released.
