Israeli negotiators traveled to the Gulf state of Qatar on Friday for the first time in weeks to restart contacts on a ceasefire to end the war in Gaza after talks stalled.
An Israeli official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the meeting was a preliminary discussion and would be followed by more substantive talks.
David Bania, director of the Israeli Mossad Foreign Intelligence Service, led an Israeli delegation to Doha, the capital of Qatar, where he planned to meet with Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Lesani.
Ceasefire talks had been stalled for weeks until Wednesday, when Hamas announced it had exchanged some ideas with mediators on a new way forward. Both U.S. and Israeli officials said Hamas’s revised position could help reach a deal, but warned that it would still require a series of protracted and difficult deliberations.
Both sides must determine the identity, number and conditions for the release of Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the 120 hostages held by Hamas and its allies. They must also determine the appropriate sequence for Israel’s withdrawal and how much control Israeli forces will have during the different stages of the deal.
Crucially, Israel and Hamas must agree on a package that resolves a major sticking point that has stymied negotiations for months: Hamas wants a complete ceasefire and a full withdrawal of Israeli troops, while Israel vows to overthrow Hamas Sri Lanka’s regime.
Israel and Hamas have been negotiating on the basis of a three-phase ceasefire framework unveiled by President Joe Biden in late May. The two sides have rejected direct talks, asking Qatari and Egyptian mediators to engage in shuttle diplomacy between the two countries.
Under the terms of the proposed deal, they would first observe a six-week truce, during which the hostages would be released in exchange for Palestinian prisoners. During those six weeks, officials will negotiate an end to the war and Israel’s withdrawal from Gaza.
But the Israeli government is deeply divided over the proposed deal, which some believe would actually give Hamas power in Gaza. Although Israel’s top leadership has given the green light to the proposal, two senior members of Prime Minister Netanyahu’s coalition have vowed to oppose it, potentially forcing him to choose between a ceasefire or political survival.
Mr Netanyahu has not explicitly backed the proposal for weeks. In a television interview last month, he appeared to withdraw his support for that and said he would not support an end to the war against Hamas. Mr Netanyahu balked and publicly backed the proposal in late June after an outcry from the hostages’ families.
Hamas faces equally complex considerations.
Some Gazans are increasingly critical of the armed group that launched an attack on Israel on October 7, triggering the war, and did not do enough to protect civilians in Gaza. Others say Hamas is hesitant to end the war, fearing for its political survival after the fighting ends.
Any deal would need to be approved by Gaza’s Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, who Israel has vowed to kill for his role in the surprise attack.
Israel’s war in Gaza is nearing its ninth month as leaders on both sides weigh a path forward. The vast majority of the population has been displaced, with many living in tents, and finding enough food and water to survive has become a daily struggle.
Israeli forces continued fighting on Friday in the Shajaiya neighborhood near Gaza City in the north of the territory, trying to suppress Palestinian militants there. Israeli troops are increasingly returning to Gaza, months after they first swept across the region to fight a renewed insurgency by Hamas and other armed groups.