Israel-Hamas Hostage Deal Talks Expected to Resume in Qatar

Qatari and Egyptian-mediated hostage deal talks between Israel and Hamas are expected to resume in Doha after a long pause in negotiations.

Israeli media reported that the Israeli security cabinet approved sending a delegation led by Mossad chief David Barnea to Doha on Monday. Barnea received a “general mandate” to negotiate, but some decisions will have to be approved by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.

Netanyahu has previously rejected an outline for a hostage deal that was drawn up by Barnea and other top Israeli intelligence and military officials. He called Hamas’s latest proposal “ridiculous” but said he planned to send a negotiating team to Doha anyway.

According to Haaretz, Hamas’s latest proposal dropped the demand for a permanent ceasefire to be agreed upon right away. It would allow an initial exchange of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners, and negotiations on a permanent truce would begin in the third phase.

But publicly, Hamas officials still say they want a permanent end to the Israeli onslaught. Ahmad Abdul Hadi, Hamas’s representative in Lebanon, told Al Mayadeen that Hamas had four conditions for a hostage-prisoner exchange deal:

• A permanent ceasefire
• Complete Israeli withdrawal from Gaza
• An end to the siege
• The return of displaced Palestinians to their homes

Netanyahu has made clear that he has no intention to end the slaughter in Gaza and that any truce as a result of a hostage deal would only be temporary. He continues to vow Israel will “eradicate” Hamas even though both US and Israeli intelligence have said that’s not a realistic goal.