Barnea will meet CIA Director Burns and a Qatari delegation in the hopes to reignite negotiation talks with Hamas—although chances for a breakthrough are reportedly low.
(JNS)
The head of Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency is scheduled to travel to Qatar on Sunday to resume negotiations for the release of the 101 hostages still being held in the Gaza Strip.
Hebrew media reported that negotiating teams from Israel, Qatar and the United States were “pessimistic” regarding a prospective agreement, despite Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s greenlighting a recent Egyptian offer, branded as a “small deal.”
Arab sources familiar with the negotiation efforts told The Washington Post that they were hopeful the Egyptian offer could expand into a broader agreement that could lead to the end of the war in Gaza.
According to Hebrew outlet Ynet, CIA Director William Burns and Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed Al Thani will lead their respective delegations in the triumvirate talks in Doha.
On Friday, the Mossad chief David Barnea met in Cairo with the newly appointed Egyptian intelligence chief, Hassan Rashad. A day prior to the meeting, the Egyptians met with a Hamas delegation.
Speaking to AFP, a senior Hamas official said: “Hamas has expressed readiness to stop the fighting, but Israel must commit to a ceasefire, withdraw from the Gaza Strip, allow the return of displaced people, agree to a serious prisoner exchange deal and allow the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza.”
Following the recent killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, the main plotter of the terrorist group’s invasion of southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, there was optimism that a deal to release the hostages could be hastened.
But American sources have suggested that the resulting leadership vacuum in Hamas have lowered the probability of a deal being reached quickly, according to Ynet.
In the wake of Sinwar’s death it was reported that Hamas had established a senior council composed of five senior members, and that a new leader would be elected in March “if conditions permit.”
In a phone call between Netanyahu and U.S. President Joe Biden earlier in the month, both leaders “agreed that there is an opportunity to advance the release of the hostages and [to] work together to achieve this objective,” according to a statement by Netanyahu’s office.
However, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant painted a grim picture on Oct. 16 during a meeting with the families of Israeli hostages.
Hamas has hardened its stance and negotiations have reached a stalemate, he said, according to Ynet. “I hope we reach something, but right now there is no lead,” Gallant told the families. “Hamas is slow in establishing contact, communication is crawling.”
Furthermore, “The Americans are not really on this,” he said.
Image: Israelis protest outside the Ministry of Defense in Tel Aviv for the immediate release of the hostages held by Hamas in Gaza, Sept. 1, 2024. Photo by Gili Yaari/Flash90.
