U.S. and Israeli negotiators will gather in Doha in the coming days to try to restart talks toward a deal for a ceasefire and the release of hostages in Gaza, officials said on Thursday.
Qatar and Egypt have acted as mediators between Israel and Hamas in months of talks that broke down in August without an agreement to end fighting that began when the Palestinian militant group launched attacks on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
David Barnea, the head of its Mossad intelligence agency, would travel to Doha on Sunday, said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office, adding that CIA director William Burns would be present for the talks.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken traveled to the Middle East this week hoping to revive the talks following the death of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, who Washington says was the main obstacle to a deal.
“We talked about options to capitalize on this moment and next steps to move the process forward,” Blinken told reporters earlier, after talks with Qatar’s Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani. “I anticipate that our negotiators will be getting together in the coming days.”
Blinken said it had not yet been determined whether Hamas was prepared to engage in new negotiations, but urged the group to do so.
He declined to say who would be present at the Doha talks but said Washington was talking to both Qatari and Egyptian mediators about “different options” for restarting the talks.
(Source: Reuters)
