CIA Chief William Burns, Mossad Chief David Barnea, Shin Bet Chief Ronen Bar, Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed Al-Thani, and head of the Egyptian Intelligence Services Abbas Kamel met in Paris on Sunday and held closed-door talks on possibility of pausing war and securing release of hostages in Gaza.
The Qatari and Egyptian teams arrived at the French capital on Saturday, with the Israelis and Americans arriving on Sunday.
As of Sunday noon, no special activity has been registered either near the American embassy in Paris or near the residence of the American ambassador in the city.
Barnea had reportedly traveled to Qatar several times since Oct. 7. On December 16, reports said that the chief of the Mossad met with Al-Thani in Oslo, but a later report by public broadcaster Kan said the meeting actually took place in Paris. It is not sure yet how long the parties will stay this time in the French capital for the talks.
According to KAN NEWS, the Israeli team aims at clarifying to their interlocutors that they “need to apply additional levers of pressure on Hamas” to accept what Israel would consider a reasonable deal.
“The purpose of this top-level meeting is to try and initiate a move; to bring up ideas, proposals, to break the deadlock,” it was said.
Reports in recent days have indicated that the sides have come closer to a deal, which should see Israel suspending fighting in Gaza for two months.
Hostages will be released in two or three phases. In the first stage, fighting will be stopped for 30 days, with women, elderly men, and hostages injured or sick will be released.
At the same time, Israel and Hamas will finalize the details of the second phase, during which the fighting will be suspended for an additional 30 days.
Meanwhile, protests across some states in the United States are demanding a ceasefire in Gaza .
Protests demanding a ceasefire in Gaza have recently erupted across the US, including near airports and bridges in New York City and Los Angeles, vigils outside the White House, and marches in Washington. Demonstrators have also interrupted Biden’s speeches and events.
The protests have been organized by a range of human rights, Jewish, and anti-war activist groups.
Former US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on Sunday that she thinks some protests in the United States demanding a ceasefire in Gaza could be linked to Russia.
“For them to call for a ceasefire is Mr. Putin’s message, Mr. Putin’s message. Make no mistake, this is directly connected to what he (Russian President Vladimir Putin) would like to see,” Pelosi said.
The UN has demanded an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza, but Washington has vetoed resolutions for such calls in the United Nations Security Council, saying it would let Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, which governs Gaza, regroup and rebuild.
Hamas’ October 7 attack on Israel killed 1,200 people, according to Israeli tallies.
