Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is sending the director of the foreign intelligence agency Mossad to negotiate a ceasefire in Qatar.
ADVERTISEMENTNetanyahu’s office announced the decision on Saturday, seen as a sign of progress in the Gaza war talks. It was not immediately clear when David Barnea would travel to the Qatari capital, Doha, site of the latest round of indirect talks between Israel and the militant group Hamas. His presence means that senior Israeli officials are now involved and would have to sign off on any agreement.
In 15 months of war, only one short truce was reached, and that was in the first weeks of fighting. Negotiations brokered by the United States, Egypt and Qatar have since repeatedly stalled.
Netanyahu insisted on destroying Hamas’ ability to fight in Gaza. Hamas insisted on the complete withdrawal of Israeli troops from the largely devastated territory. Gaza’s health ministry said on Thursday that more than 46,000 Palestinians had been killed in the war.
The head of Israel’s Shin Bet internal security agency and military and political advisers are also being sent to Qatar. Netanyahu’s office said the decision followed a meeting with his defense minister, security chiefs and negotiators “on behalf of the outgoing and incoming US administration.”
The office also released a photo of Netanyahu with President-elect Donald Trump’s new special envoy for the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, who was in Qatar this week.
The families of the roughly 100 hostages still being held in Gaza after being captured in the October 7, 2023 militant attack that sparked the war are pressing Netanyahu to reach a deal to bring their loved ones home.
The recovery of the bodies of two hostages last week renewed fears that time was running out. Hamas said that after months of heavy fighting, it is not certain who is alive or dead.
Israel and Hamas are under pressure from outgoing US President Joe Biden and Trump to reach a deal before the January 20 inauguration.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said this week that a deal was “very close” and that he hoped to complete it before handing over diplomacy to the incoming Trump administration. But US officials have expressed similar optimism on several occasions over the past year.
Issues in the talks included which hostages would be freed in the first phase of the ceasefire agreement, which Palestinian prisoners would be released and the extent of any withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza’s population centers.
Hamas and other groups killed about 1,200 people and took about 250 hostages in Gaza in an attack that started the war. The ceasefire in November 2023 freed more than 100 hostages, while others were rescued or their remains were found during the past year.
