Swords_of_Iron

Netanyahu instructs: Delegation headed by Mossad chief to head to Qatar

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirms Mossad chief David Barnea will take off for Qatar together with ISA chief Ronen Bar, Maj.-Gen. (Res) Nitzan Alon, to speed up negotiations for ceasefire deal with Hamas.

David Barnea, Mossad chief
David Barnea, Mossad chiefAriel Hermoni/Defense Ministry

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday confirmed that Mossad chief David Barnea will leave for Qatar with a delegation of senior officials, for the purpose of advancing negotiations for a ceasefire-prisoner swap deal between Israel and Hamas.

The Prime Minister "held a discussion to assess the situation regarding the hostages and the missing with the Defense Minister, the heads of the security establishment, and with the American negotiators of both the incoming and outgoing administrations," a statement said.

"At the conclusion of the discussion, the Prime Minister directed the Mossad Director, the ISA Director, Maj.-Gen. (Res) Nitzan Alon, and his Foreign Policy Adviser, Dr. Ophir Falk, to depart for Doha in order to continue advancing a deal to release our hostages."

A Hamas official told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed that "the changes in the final stage of the talks have been completed, and now we are making arrangements among the mediators to announce the arrival at a final agreement. Now we expect the Mossad chief to head to Doha to present his agreement to the final changes."

Egyptian sources familiar with the details said that the proposal on the table includes a single stage with three time frames, instead of three separate stages as the first "gradual" deal had.

According to the sources, if agreements are reached, negotiations for the release of hostages remaining in Hamas' hands will begin approximately two weeks after the deal is implemented. During the negotiations in Qatar, Israeli representatives revealed that Israeli security forces believe between 45-51 living hostages are still in Gaza, among them 15 male soldiers of various ranks and five female soldiers who are expected to be released in the first stage of the deal.