Israeli negotiating team said to arrive in Qatar, talks expected to take at least 2 weeks

File: Head of Mossad David Barnea attends a state ceremony marking 50 years since the Yom Kippur War, held at the military cemetery at Jerusalem's Mount Herzl, on September 26, 2023. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
File: Head of Mossad David Barnea attends a state ceremony marking 50 years since the Yom Kippur War, held at the military cemetery at Jerusalem's Mount Herzl, on September 26, 2023. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

Israel’s negotiating team led by Mossad director David Barnea arrives in Qatar for indirect talks about a temporary truce in Gaza and a hostage release, the Haaretz daily reports.

A senior diplomatic official tells Haaretz that the talks will take at least two weeks and are expected to be painstaking.

“The talks will take two weeks at least and will be conducted with [Hamas Gaza leader Yahya] Sinwar in the tunnels, not with the mediators,” the official says. “So every change to the framework will take 24-36 hours.”

The expected talks would mark the first time both Israeli officials and Hamas leaders join the indirect negotiations since the start of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan last week. Mediators had hoped to secure a six-week truce before then, but Hamas refused any deal that wouldn’t lead to a permanent ceasefire in Gaza, a demand Israel flatly rejects.

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