Netanyahu said to decide not to send team to Qatar until his Trump meeting, putting truce at risk

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has decided not to send Israel’s negotiations team to Qatar at this stage for talks about the second phase of the ongoing ceasefire and hostage deal that are meant to kick off on Monday, the Walla news outlet reports, citing an unnamed senior Israel source.

The development is a “very worrying sign” about the implementation of the deal’s second phase, a senior Israeli official is quoted as saying, expressing hope that this won’t negatively impact the fulfillment of the ongoing, 42-day first phase.

According to the deal’s terms, negotiations on the second phase must start on Monday, the 16th day of the first phase. The second stage is expected to include the return of all the remaining living hostages held by terrorists in the Gaza Strip, in exchange for a yet-to-be-determined number of Palestinian security prisoners and a full Israeli withdrawal from the Strip.

Reports are increasingly indicating Netanyahu is seriously entertaining the possibility of resuming the war after the first phase, rather than continuing on to the second phase.

Walla reports that at the last minute, Netanyahu canceled a planned meeting tonight with Mossad chief David Barnea, Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar, hostage point man Nitzan Alon and other senior negotiators, sending his military secretary Roman Gofman to update them that the premier had decided not to send the team to Qatar for now.

The source is quoted as saying Netanyahu prefers not to take any action on the matter until his meeting with US President Donald Trump on Tuesday. However, delaying the negotiations until then would appear to violate the terms of the deal.

Netanyahu is reportedly seeking to appoint his confidant Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer as the head of the negotiations team instead of Barnea, arguing that the talks are chiefly diplomatic and strategic rather than security-oriented.

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