Central Intelligence Agency Director William Burns testifies before a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing on “global threats” on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., March 8, 2023. Portal/Mary F. Calvert/File Photo Acquire License Rights
DOHA, Nov 9 (Portal) – The U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and Israeli Mossad chiefs met with the Qatari prime minister in Doha on Thursday to discuss the parameters of a deal on the release of hostages and a pause to discuss the fighting between Hamas and Israel in the Gaza Strip, a source briefed on the meeting told Portal.
The outcome of the talks was unclear, but the White House later announced that Israel had agreed to a temporary pause.
Qatar, where several Hamas political leaders are based, led mediation between Hamas and Israeli officials for the release of more than 240 hostages. They were picked off by Hamas militants as they rampaged through Israel on October 7, and Israel says 1,400 people were killed.
Israel then launched a relentless bombardment of the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip and began an armored invasion of the enclave late last month, killing over 10,000 people, 40% of them children, according to Palestinian officials.
David Barnea, head of Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency, CIA Director William Burns and Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman al-Thani met after Qatari mediators met officials from Hamas’s political office on Wednesday evening and discussed possible parameters of a deal.
A U.S. official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, confirmed that Burns met with Barnea and the Qatari prime minister to discuss a possible release of hostages by Hamas. The official did not want to provide any further details.
The benefit of the meeting is to bring all three parties together at the table in real time to speed up the process, the source said.
The talks also included a discussion about allowing humanitarian fuel imports into Gaza, which Israel has so far refused to avoid, it says, being passed on to Hamas for fighting purposes.
A source told Portal on Wednesday that the talks had discussed the release of 10 to 15 hostages in exchange for a one- to two-day humanitarian pause in the war ravaging Gaza.
Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani traveled to the United Arab Emirates on Thursday evening, where he met with UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Abu Dhabi.
The Qatari Prime Minister also traveled with the Emir.
Sheikh Mohamed wrote on social media that the two leaders met to reiterate the UAE and Qatar’s demands for an immediate ceasefire, unhindered humanitarian access and the protection of all civilians.
“The UAE and Qatar strongly urge the need to advance de-escalation efforts and secure a just, lasting and comprehensive peace in the region,” he said.
Reporting by Andrew Mills, additional reporting by Jonathan Landay in Washington; writing by Maha El Dahan and Alexander Cornwell; Edited by Toby Chopra, Mark Heinrich and Grant McCool
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