Talks held on Sunday initiated by Qatar, the United States and Egypt to broker a hostage deal between Israel and Hamas were "constructive" but meaningful gaps remain, the Israeli prime minister's office said.
The Hostages Square" in Tel Aviv © Mena Today
Talks held on Sunday initiated by Qatar, the United States and Egypt to broker a hostage deal between Israel and Hamas were "constructive" but meaningful gaps remain, the Israeli prime minister's office said.
"There are still significant gaps in which the parties will continue to discuss this week in additional mutual meetings," Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said in a statement.
U.S. Central Intelligence Agency Director William Burns and the head of Israel's Mossad intelligence service, David Barnea, met with Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, along with the head of Egyptian intelligence, Abbas Kamel, the statement said.
It said the talks took place in Europe, without giving a specific venue.
U.S. President Joe Biden's administration has been trying to facilitate the release of the more than 100 hostages who remain captive after the deadly Oct. 7 attack on Israel by militant Islamist group Hamas, which rules Gaza.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke by telephone with French President Emmanuel Macron on Sunday, his office said, and told him that placing restrictions on Israel will just serve Iran and its proxies.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog was interviewed by the Saudi news channel Al-Arabiya, and called on the peoples of the region to unite against Iran: “Iran is the only country in the world who calls for the eradication of another UN member state.
Israel's economy has for almost a year ridden out the chaos of a war that risks spiralling into a regional conflict, but rising borrowing costs are starting to strain its financial architecture.
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