Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu approved sending a negotiating team to participate in talks with aims of reaching a hostage release and ceasefire deal with Hamas, according to an Israeli official quoted by The Times of Israel.

Netanyahu spoke on the phone with United States President Joe Biden regarding the negotiations, and vowed Israel will end the war ‘only after meeting all goals,’ his office stated.

Israeli intelligence chief David Barnea is headed to Doha for talks on a truce and hostage release deal with Hamas, a source with knowledge of the talks told AFP Thursday.
“An Israeli delegation headed by David Barnea is travelling to Qatar in a continuation of talks on a ceasefire and hostage deal. He will meet with the Qatari prime minister for discussions aiming to bring the parties closer to a deal in Gaza,” the source said on condition of anonymity given the sensitivity of talks.

In the meeting with his negotiating team ahead of the decision, Netanyahu “stressed again that the war will end only after achieving all of its goals, and not one moment earlier.”

Last night, the Israeli Prime Minister’s office announced that Israel had received Hamas’ latest response to Israel’s proposal, and would study it today. Hamas insists it will only agree to a deal that guarantees a permanent end to the fighting in Gaza.

On the preceding day, Hamas said it had sent new “ideas” to Qatari mediators aimed at ending the nearly nine-month Gaza war with Israel.

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Hamas Sends Mediators ‘Ideas’ for Halting Israel War

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