Mossad chief visits Qatar as Israel shifts focus to full Gaza hostage deal

Jerusalem, Aug 15 (IANS) Israel's Mossad Chief David Barnea visited Doha for talks with Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani on a Gaza hostage deal, media reported.

A senior Israeli official told Israel's state-owned Kan TV on Thursday that Barnea informed the Qatari Prime Minister that a phased deal for the release of the 50 hostages held in Gaza "is off the table".

The official said the meeting focused on "issues involving the Mossad" and not on renewing the indirect negotiations in Doha, the last of which took place in early July, Xinhua news agency reported.

The visit comes after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday that efforts to secure a truce in Gaza are now centered on a comprehensive deal to release all remaining hostages at once.

Previous deals involved temporary truces in exchange for the phased release of hostages.

Barnea's visit also follows reports that a Hamas delegation arrived in Qatar earlier this week, in a bid to revive negotiations and avert Israel's plan to further escalate its offensive in Gaza.

According to Channel 12, Barnea conveyed to al-Thani during their meeting that Israel was not bluffing with its plan to conquer Gaza, and intends to do so unless there's progress in the talks to free the hostages.

Following the breakdown of negotiations for a temporary ceasefire last month, and after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government approved plans to invade Gaza City and widen the military's grip on the Gaza Strip, Israeli officials have signaled that they are no longer interested in securing a temporary calm and the release of only some of the hostages.

Instead, they have said Israel wants to pursue a comprehensive deal to release the remaining hostages and end the war in Gaza on Jerusalem's terms -- with the demilitarisation of the Strip and the installation of a new government that is not connected to Hamas or the Palestinian Authority.

Still, mediator Egypt is trying to bring both Israel and Hamas back to the negotiating table to discuss a temporary truce with room for it to turn into a permanent ceasefire once both sides have agreed on the exact terms.

The framework would likely be similar to the previous one put forward by US Special envoy Steve Witkoff, which was at the centre of the failed negotiations last month.

"The main objective is to go back to the original proposal -- to have a ceasefire for 60 days, with the release of some hostages and some Palestinian detainees, and the flow of humanitarian and medical assistance to Gaza without restrictions, without conditions," Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty said earlier this week, announcing the plans.

As Israeli forces continued their assault in Gaza, local health authorities said on Thursday that at least 50 people were killed throughout the enclave over the past 24 hours and 831 wounded, including 22 killed while trying to get food at aid centres.

Since October 2023, at least 61,776 people have been killed by Israeli strikes and gunfire, the authorities added.

Four more people died of famine and malnutrition, bringing the total to 239, including 106 children.

--IANS

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