Israeli hostage team said awaiting PM’s go-ahead for resumed talks, may be sent to Qatar

Israel’s hostage negotiating team is awaiting instructions from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on whether to continue hostage talks, amid indications that a delegation could be sent to Qatar in the coming days, Hebrew media reports, citing sources familiar with the matter.

Reports add that Israel expects Hamas to give only a vague acceptance of the US proposal under discussion in Doha, likely responding along the lines of “yes, but” — particularly over contentious clauses such as the timetable for the IDF’s withdrawal from Gaza.

A senior Israeli official tells Channel 12 that the key decision-making power appears to be with Hamas’s leadership in Gaza, rather than abroad, since they are the ones who would ultimately need to relinquish weapons and governance of the Strip.