Qatar has resumed its role as a key mediator in negotiations on a ceasefire in Gaza and a hostage release deal, sources told the Reuters news agency on Wednesday.
Hamas negotiators are also expected to return to Doha to participate in these discussions, the news agency said.
Meanwhile, according to the report, Steve Witkoff, the incoming Middle East envoy for US President-elect Donald Trump, has initiated diplomatic efforts to broker a Gaza ceasefire and secure a hostage release agreement.
Witkoff met with the prime ministers of both Qatar and Israel as part of these efforts, a source familiar with the discussions told Reuters.
The meetings took place during Witkoff's visits to Qatar and Israel in late November, the source added.
Meanwhile, Qatar’s Prime Minister told Sky News that Trump wants the Gaza ceasefire agreement to be in place by the time he takes office. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) recently made a similar comment in an interview with Axios.
The diplomatic effort to achieve a hostage release deal faced a setback recently when Qatar announced it would pause its mediation role until Israel and Hamas demonstrate “greater commitment”.
During the previous rounds of talks, the United States had been pushing an outline for a ceasefire and hostage release deal that President Joe Biden first laid out in May, but Hamas rejected that proposal and every other proposal that has been presented to it.
Last week, Hamas put out an official statement, saying that it is interested in a deal to end the war which began after it launched an attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.
However, in that statement, Hamas again insisted that any agreement must include an end to the war and a full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza.