Mossad Director David Barnea, who held cease-fire talks in Qatar over the weekend, conveyed to mediators in Doha that for progress on a hostage release deal, Hamas must agree to the proposed framework without any changes, Ynet learned on Saturday.
Barnea's visit lasted several hours and addressed unresolved issues. He met with Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed Al Thani and other senior officials, including Egyptian intelligence representatives. The discussions were conducted in a positive spirit, with an understanding that remaining gaps need to be bridged.
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Hamas leader in Gaza Yahya Sinwar, Qatar Emir Tamim Al Thani and Mossad Director David Barnea
(Photo: Reuters, EPA, Amir Katz)
According to the framework, the cease-fire will commence with an initial three-day truce, after which Hamas will release three women. On the seventh day, the terror group will release four more women. Israel believes that 11 of the women held hostage in Gaza are alive: six civilians and five soldiers.
Meanwhile, Hamas issued a new demand for written guarantees from mediating countries to maintain negotiations until a deal, which includes reaching a cease-fire, is achieved.
The New York Times reported Saturday that Barnea emphasized this as a significant departure from the proposal adopted by the UN Security Council and U.S. President Joe Biden.
A senior source speaking to the Times clarified that Hamas' demand would allow it to draw out negotiations indefinitely, potentially for weeks or months. According to the source, Hamas wants to ensure it doesn’t release most hostages to Israel and then see the IDF resume military action.
A dual delegation of working teams is slated to depart on Monday for Doha, Qatar, and Cairo, Egypt, to hold talks on the hostage deal proposal. Meanwhile, CIA Director Bill Burns is expected to visit the region to hold a summit supporting the negotiations.
This summit will include Barnea, Al Thani and Egyptian intelligence chief Abbas Kamel. The summit is likely to take place in Qatar but could also be held in Cairo. Burns may also visit Israel to ensure Israel's agreement to the deal.
Meanwhile, the recent talks in Qatar also revealed that 70% of the tunnels discovered by the IDF in Rafah on the Gaza Strip's southernmost edge have been sealed on the Egyptian side.