Smoke billows after Israeli bombardment on Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on March 21, 2024. (PHOTO / AFP)
JERUSALEM/CAIRO - Israel is set to send a delegation to Qatar for negotiations on a Gaza ceasefire deal, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said in a statement on Thursday.
The delegation, led by head of the Israeli Mossad intelligence agency, David Barnea, will depart for Qatar on Friday, his office said.
The talks include the head of the US Central Intelligence Agency William Burns, Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, and Egyptian Intelligence Minister Abbas Kamel.
The meeting "will be held as part of the negotiations in Doha, and its purpose is to advance the efforts to return the hostages", the office stated.
In Cairo, ministers from five Arab countries met Thursday with the Palestine Liberation Organization Executive Committee Secretary-General Hussein al-Sheikh to discuss the war in the Gaza Strip
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who is expected to arrive in Israel for talks with senior officials on Friday, said Wednesday in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, that negotiations to secure an immediate truce in the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza were "getting closer" to a deal.
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In Cairo, ministers from five Arab countries met Thursday with the Palestine Liberation Organization Executive Committee Secretary-General Hussein al-Sheikh to discuss the war in the Gaza Strip.
In a joint statement released by the Egyptian presidency, al-Sheikh, as well as the foreign ministers from Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates minister of state for international cooperation, called for "achieving a comprehensive and immediate ceasefire, increasing the access of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, and opening all crossings between Israel and Gaza".
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They called for clearing the obstacles to aid delivery in Gaza and providing full support for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees.
(From left) Secretary-General of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organisation Hussein al-Sheikh, Saudi Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah, Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry, Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi, UAE Minister of State for International Cooperation Reem Ebrahim Al Hashimy and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken pose for a photo following a meeting in Cairo on March 21, 2024. (PHOTO / AFP)
The officials rejected any attempts to displace Palestinians from their land or liquidate the Palestinian cause, urging Israel to stop all unilateral measures that undermine the chances of achieving just peace, including its settlement construction.
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Israel has been launching a massive offensive against the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) in Gaza in retaliation for the latter's attack on Israel on Oct 7, 2023, during which about 1,200 Israelis were killed and more than 200 were taken hostage.
Since then, the ongoing Israeli attacks in Gaza have killed 31,988 Palestinians and wounded 74,188 others, according to the update by the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza on Thursday.
