Israel will be sending a delegation to Doha to discuss a ceasefire deal for Gaza, as the US secretary of state was greeted by Qatar’s Emir today.
Israel’s delegation will be arriving in Doha on Sunday, a spokesperson for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said.
It will join Qatari officials – who have been key mediators for Hamas, the militant group ruling Gaza – as well as US diplomats as they seek to restart negotiations for a ceasefire and hostage release deal.
Mr Blinken was pictured today being greeted by Qatar’s Emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, as he arrived in Qatar’s capital.
It is the 11th time the US secretary has visited the Middle East since the war in Gaza broke out a year ago, following Hamas’s attack on 7 October 2023, which saw 1,200 people killed in southern Israel and around 250 taken hostage.
The massacre, which marked the bloodiest day in Israeli history, triggered Israel’s military campaign in the besieged enclave of Gaza, where local health authorities claim more than 42,000 people have been killed in the past year.
Today alone, seven children were among at least 17 killed in an Israeli airstrike on a refugee camp in central Gaza, Palestinian officials and a hospital have said.
That while the Israeli military said four soldiers were killed and six were wounded during combat in southern Lebanon, where the Iranian-backed militant group Hezbollah has been clashing with the Israel Defence Forces (IDF).
Mossad head David Barnea is part of the Israeli delegation travelling to Doha for the talks.
He will be meeting with CIA director William Burns and the Qatari prime minister, Mr Netanyahu’s office said today.
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“The parties will discuss the various options for starting negotiations for the release of the hostages from Hamas
captivity, against the backdrop of the latest developments,” it said.
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Months of ceasefire negotiations brokered by the United States, Egypt and Qatar sputtered to a halt over the summer.
Mr Blinken, speaking after talks with Qatar’s prime minister, said it had not yet been determined whether Hamas was prepared to engage in new negotiations, but urged the group to do so.
His trip is the first to the region since Israel killed Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, a mastermind of the group’s 7 October attack.
Washington has called for his death to be used as an opportunity to try and restore peace.