Israeli spy agency chief in Doha on Sunday to revive stalled Gaza truce talks

Mossad chief David Barnea will meet with CIA chief Bill Burns and Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani in Doha to restart attempts at reaching a deal to stop the year-long Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.

In Short

• Mossad chief to hold talks with CIA chief and Qatari PM in Doha
• US's Antony Blinken discusses truce options with Qatari PM
• Gaza truce talks have stalled in past 2 months amid Israel-Hamas war

The chief of Israeli intelligence agency, Mossad, will travel to Doha in Qatar on Sunday to restart talks on a deal to release the Israeli hostages held in Gaza and to stop the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.

David Barnea is expected to meet with CIA chief Bill Burns and Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani in Doha. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is presently in the Qatari capital in a bid to restart the talks, news agency Reuters reported.

Qatar and Egypt have mediated in the truce talks between Israel and Hamas that broke down without an agreement in August to end the fighting that began when Hamas launched attacks on southern Israel on October 7 last year.

Blinken held talks with Qatar's Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani and said he discussed options to take the process forward on achieving a truce. "I anticipate that our negotiators will be getting together in the coming days," he told reporters.

The top US diplomat said he urged Hamas to participate in the truce talks, though he stressed that there was no indication of whether the group was prepared to be involved in new negotiations.

The Biden administration has said that the killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar by Israel would provide a window of opening for a revival of talks for a ceasefire deal. Washington had earlier cited Sinwar as the biggest obstacle in achieving any agreement.

For over two months, talks have been largely stalled with the US blaming Hamas for not coming on the table. On the other hand, Egyptian and Qatari mediators have privately blamed Israel, according to officials familiar with the matter.

Blinken said Israel accomplished the strategic goal of making sure that another October 7-like attack can never happen again and effectively dismantling Hamas and bringing its leaders to justice, The Times of Israel reported.

"The fundamental question is: Is Hamas serious? My hope is that — again, in our judgment, Yahya Sinwar was the biggest obstacle to actually concluding an agreement. My hope is that now their minds will be concentrated, and we can get there and make progress," he said.

On his part, the Qatari Prime Minister said his government "re-engaged" with Hamas leaders in Doha recently since Sinwar was killed, but stressed that the group's position has not changed.

Hamas has insisted that a ceasefire in Gaza was only possible if Israel completely stopped its offensive on the Palestinian enclave.

Meanwhile, an Egyptian security delegation met with a delegation of Hamas leaders in Cairo to push for a truce in Gaza, an unnamed official source said, according to Egypt's state-affiliated Al Qahera News TV.

A senior Hamas official said the delegation led by the group's deputy chief in Gaza, Khalil al-Hayya, discussed "ideas and proposals" about a ceasefire agreement with Egyptian officials.

"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," the official told AFP.

On October 7, 2023, the war in Gaza was triggered by Hamas's cross-border attacks on southern Israel that killed around 1,200 people and over 250 were taken hostage by the group in Gaza. Over 40,000 people have been killed in the year-long war so far.

(with inputs from agencies)