By Maayan Lubell
JERUSALEM (Reuters) – A prime stage Israeli safety delegation arrived in Qatar on Sunday for talks on a Gaza hostage and ceasefire deal, a spokesperson for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu mentioned, in a attainable signal of so-far elusive agreements nearing.
Qatar and fellow mediators Egypt and america are making renewed efforts to achieve a deal to halt the preventing within the enclave and free the remaining 98 hostages held there earlier than President-elect Donald Trump takes workplace on Jan. 20.
Netanyahu’s workplace mentioned on Saturday that the delegation consists of Mossad Head David Barnea, the pinnacle of the Shin Wager home safety service Ronen Bar and the navy’s head of the hostage temporary, Nitzan Alon.
Trump’s Center East envoy, Steve Witkoff, met on Saturday with Netanyahu, after having met on Friday with Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani.
Israeli and Palestinian officers have mentioned since Thursday that some progress has been made within the oblique talks between Israel and militant group Hamas however didn’t elaborate. The edges have been maintaining a good lid on the small print being labored out.
It’s unclear how they may bridge one of many largest gaps that has continued all through earlier rounds of talks: Hamas calls for an finish to the warfare whereas Israel says it will not finish the warfare so long as Hamas guidelines Gaza and poses a risk to Israelis.
Israel launched its assault in Gaza after Hamas fighters stormed throughout its borders in October 2023, killing 1,200 folks and taking greater than 250 hostages, in keeping with Israeli tallies.
Since then, greater than 46,000 folks have been killed in Gaza, in keeping with Palestinian well being officers, with a lot of the enclave laid to waste and gripped by a humanitarian disaster, and most of its inhabitants displaced.
