Negotiations for a hostage deal in Qatar are ongoing, but no breakthrough has been achieved despite the imminent inauguration of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump. As a result, Mossad chief David Barnea’s planned trip to Doha, originally scheduled for earlier this week, has been delayed and CIA director William Burns has yet to convene a summit for the talks.
Sources familiar with the details believe the negotiations are not at an impasse despite the challenges. They noted that talks are progressing, but every resolved issue leads Hamas to reopen previously agreed matters. Additionally, communication difficulties between Hamas’ external leadership and its de facto leader in Gaza Mohammed Sinwar are reportedly complicating the process.
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Dead end in the talks?
(Photo:REUTERS / Mohammed Salem / Erin Schaff /Pool , Alex Kolomoisky , AP / Carlos Osorio)
Hamas has so far refused to provide a list of live hostages and mediators are working to bridge this gap. Israel continues to insist that no progress can be made without such a list. Moreover, Hamas' refusal to disclose in advance who among the hostages on the list provided by Israel to mediators in July is alive or dead is seen by officials as a tactic to maximize Palestinian prisoner releases in exchange for as few live hostages as possible.
Above all, the ongoing dispute over ending the war and withdrawing IDF forces looms large. While Hamas has reportedly signaled to mediators that it is no longer insisting on this demand, the issue resurfaces repeatedly.
Conversely, a senior Palestinian official told Reuters that Israel has introduced a new condition, insisting on maintaining a one-kilometer-wide military presence in the eastern and southern parts of Gaza, along the Philadelphi Corridor. “This will hinder residents from returning to their homes and constitutes a backtrack on previously agreed terms,” the official claimed.
Meanwhile, as U.S. President Joe Biden's envoys express frustration over their lack of progress, attention turns to Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff, who is set to arrive in Doha tomorrow. Before his trip, Witkoff met with Israel’s Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer in Florida.
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Mediators and Israel now hope his presence might inject fresh momentum, pressuring Hamas to realize that Trump is serious about his threats against them if the hostages aren’t released.