Netanyahu sends top officials to Qatar for critical Gaza ceasefire talks
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has dispatched senior officials to Qatar to negotiate a potential Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal, his office announced on Saturday.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has dispatched senior officials to Qatar to negotiate a potential Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal, his office announced on Saturday. The delegation includes leaders from Mossad, Shin Bet, General Nitzan Alon, and foreign policy adviser Ophir Falk, tasked with advancing the critical negotiations.
Netanyahu, who faces accusations of war crimes by the International Criminal Court, convened in Jerusalem with U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, a representative of current President Joe Biden, and senior Israeli officials before issuing the directive.
The talks, mediated by the United States alongside Qatar and Egypt, aim to end the devastating war in Gaza while securing the release of hostages held by Hamas. In exchange, Israel may release Palestinian detainees. The Hostages and Missing Families Forum hailed the announcement as “a historic opportunity to secure the release of all our loved ones,” urging negotiators to “leave no stone unturned.”
Negotiations resumed last weekend in Qatar, focusing on the immediate release of captives taken during Hamas’ October 7, 2023 attack in southern Israel, which the group claimed was retaliation for long-standing Israeli occupation and aggression. Currently, 94 captives remain in Gaza, with 34 declared dead by Israeli forces, some casualties of Israeli strikes.
Outgoing President Biden noted “real progress” in the talks, while President-elect Trump warned of severe consequences if the hostages are not released by his inauguration. The ongoing conflict has claimed over 46,500 lives, mostly civilians, according to reliable figures from Gaza’s health ministry, leaving much of the enclave in ruins and its population displaced.