The head of the Mossad spy service held a first round of talks in Doha on Friday and returned to Jerusalem. “It was agreed that next week Israeli negotiators will travel to Doha to continue the talks. There are still gaps between the parties,” the spokesman said in a statement.
The Israeli negotiating team led by Mossad chief David Barnea returned to Israel after holding meetings with Qatari mediators in Doha regarding Hamas’s latest ceasefire proposal, an Israeli official told The Times of Israel.
Hamas had informed Hezbollah earlier in the day that it had agreed to a proposed ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, according to sources familiar with the matter.
This information was relayed during a meeting in Beirut between a Hamas delegation led by its deputy leader Khalil Al-Hayya and Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.
According to a Hezbollah statement, the pair reviewed “the latest security and political developments” in the Gaza Strip. “They also discussed the latest developments in the negotiations underway these days, their atmosphere, and the proposals presented to end the treacherous aggression against the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip,” the statement said.
A Hezbollah official told Reuters that it would stop its attacks on Israel as soon as the Gaza ceasefire deal goes into effect, echoing previous statements by the group. “If there is an agreement on Gaza, then from zero hours on, there will be a ceasefire in Lebanon,” the Hezbollah official said.
A senior American official noted that there had been a significant modification in Hamas’ position regarding a potential hostage deal with Israel. In response, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu informed United States President Joe Biden that he was sending a delegation to resume negotiations.
US officials, including Secretary of State Antony Blinken, have voiced hope that a ceasefire in Gaza could lead to an easing of violence on the Israel-Lebanon border as well.
