Qatari PM says he hopes Israel, Hamas will restart hostage-ceasefire talks in coming days

Qatar’s prime minister says that he hopes indirect talks will be held in the coming days between Israel and Hamas as part of a renewed push to reach a hostage-ceasefire deal.

“Regarding the Gaza talks, discussions are ongoing with both the Israeli side and Hamas in an effort to reach an agreement based on the American draft,” says Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani, without giving details on what the proposal involves.

“We had achieved a lot in the past, but the Israeli escalation against Iran disrupted the process. However, we are still continuing our efforts, inshallah, and we are trying to find an opportunity in the next day or two for indirect talks between the sides to reach an agreement,” he says.

There is no immediate comment from the Prime Minister’s Office.

The war in Gaza was sparked by the Hamas onslaught on October 7, 2023, in which thousands of terrorists killed some 1,200 people and took 251 hostages.

Terror groups in the Gaza Strip are holding 50 hostages, including 49 of the 251 abducted by Hamas-led terrorists on October 7, 2023. They include the bodies of at least 28 confirmed dead by the IDF. Twenty are believed to be alive and there are grave concerns for the well-being of two others, Israeli officials have said. Hamas is also holding the body of an IDF soldier killed in Gaza in 2014.

The Hamas-run Gaza health ministry says more than 53,000 people in the Strip have been killed or are presumed dead in the fighting so far, though the toll cannot be verified and does not differentiate between civilians and fighters. Israel says it has killed some 20,000 combatants in battle as of January and another 1,600 terrorists inside Israel during the October 7 onslaught.