Talks on Gaza Cease-Fire Revive After Weeks of Deadlock

Israeli negotiators traveled to the Gulf nation of Qatar on Friday for the first time in weeks to restart contacts over a cease-fire deal that would end the war in Gaza, following weeks of deadlock in the negotiations.

An Israeli official, speaking on condition of anonymity, described the meeting as a preliminary discussion with more substantive talks to follow.

David Barnea, the head of Israel’s Mossad foreign intelligence service, led the Israeli delegation to Doha, the Qatari capital, where he was set to meet with Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani, the Qatari prime minister.

Cease-fire negotiations had been stalled for weeks until Wednesday, when Hamas announced that it had exchanged some ideas with mediators on a new way forward. Both U.S. and Israeli officials said the revised Hamas position could allow for an agreement, but cautioned that a protracted and difficult series of deliberations lay ahead nonetheless.

Both sides would have to sort out the identity, number and conditions for the release of Palestinian prisoners who would be freed in exchange for the 120 living and dead hostages held by Hamas and its allies. They also would have to determine an appropriate sequence of Israeli withdrawal of forces and how much control Israeli forces would have at different phases in the agreement.