The head of Israel's Mossad spy agency met Qatar's prime minister in Europe late on Friday, according to a source with knowledge of the matter, as attention turned to a possible new Gaza truce and a prisoner and hostage deal.
The meeting between David Barnea and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani was apparently the first between senior officials from Israel and Qatar, which has been acting as a mediator, since the collapse of a seven-day ceasefire in late November © Mena Today
The head of Israel's Mossad spy agency met Qatar's prime minister in Europe late on Friday, according to a source with knowledge of the matter, as attention turned to a possible new Gaza truce and a prisoner and hostage deal.
Israel bombarded targets across Gaza on Saturday, but two Egyptian security sources said Israeli officials now appeared more willing to work towards a ceasefire and an exchange of Palestinian prisoners for Israeli hostages held by Hamas.
The meeting between David Barnea and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani was apparently the first between senior officials from Israel and Qatar, which has been acting as a mediator, since the collapse of a seven-day ceasefire in late November.
In another sign of a possible breakthrough, Israeli media said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would convene his security cabinet and deliver a televised statement on Saturday evening. Netanyahu's office did not immediately confirm that.
Reporting by Nidal al-Mughrabi in Cairo and Shani and Fadi Shana in Gaza, Henriette Chacar, Ari Rabinovitch and Frank Jack Daniel in Jerusalem, Andrea Shalal, Jeff Mason and Eric Beech in Washington; Writing by Michael Perry, Kevin Liffey and Giles Elgood; Editing by William Mallard, Tom Hogue and Andrew Heavens
During a high-level conference in New York centered on the renewed global push for the recognition of a Palestinian state, Egypt surprised many observers by issuing a clear and firm call for the disarmament of Hamas, the militant organization that rules the Gaza Strip and is widely held responsible for the ongoing conflict with Israel.
Saudi Arabia and France on Tuesday called on countries at the United Nations to support a declaration that outlines "tangible, timebound, and irreversible steps" towards implementing a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians.
Britain will recognise the state of Palestine in September unless the Israeli government takes substantive steps to end the "appalling situation" in Gaza and meets other conditions, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer told his cabinet on Tuesday according to a government statement.
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