Senior Israeli delegation members who arrived in Qatar for talks on a possible hostage deal said on Monday that there was no progress at the moment. "There are significant gaps between the parties, and efforts are being made to bridge them
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The delegation comprises representatives from the Mossad, Shin Bet, and IDF is engaging in talks with senior Qatari intelligence officials who simultaneously hold contacts with Hamas.
Negotiations are progressing on the specifics of the emerging deal, which require delicate "stitching" of many components, including the identities of the hostages: as a condition for continuing the negotiations, Israel demands a detailed list clarifying who among the hostages is alive and who is not.
Other sensitive issues include the terms of the ceasefire and IDF withdrawal (including the duration of the ceasefire), the identities of the hostages to be released in the deal (approximately 35 to 40 women, elderly, and infirm), the manner of delivering humanitarian aid to Gaza and its distribution, and the resolution of the northern Gaza Strip settlement: Hamas seeks to allow the return of residents, while Israel is considering a limited return.
Although there hasn't been an official response from Hamas to the Paris outline of a deal, intermediaries conveyed messages to Israel indicating negative signals from the terrorist organization regarding its dissatisfaction with the framework and its failure to adhere to its red lines.
Consequently, there was less optimism in Israel regarding the prospects of reaching a deal. Nevertheless, it was emphasized that it is premature to jump to conclusions. Meanwhile, The New York Times reported that the Israeli team expressed readiness to release 15 "heavyweight" prisoners with blood on their hands in exchange for the release of five soldiers.
"The Americans are pushing vigorously for a political plan for a Palestinian state and normalization with Saudi Arabia.", the officials said. "If they feel they do not succeed in promoting it before the US presidential elections, they will go full force against Netanyahu because they do not like him. The Americans still have time to push their plan."
They believed they still had time, the Israeli officials said. "Learning from history - Trump brought the Abraham Accords three months before the presidential elections. This means they still have a timeframe until June-July, and therefore they are making great efforts to end the fighting in Gaza. What remains for Israel to do is an assault on Rafah. Today there is momentum for a deal on hostages because the Palestinians want their public to be at ease for Ramadan. Hamas wants to stop the fighting, but logic says there is a reasonable chance for a partial deal."