DOHA/CAIRO: Mediators gave Israel and Hamas a final draft of a deal on Monday to end the war in Gaza, an official briefed on the negotiations said, after a midnight "breakthrough" in talks attended by envoys of both Joe Biden and Donald Trump.
The official said the text for a ceasefire and release of captives was presented by Qatar to both sides at talks in Doha, which included the chiefs of Israel's Mossad and Shin Bet spy agencies and Qatar's prime minister.
Steve Witkoff, who will become US envoy when Trump returns to the US presidency next week, attended the talks, the official said. A US source said the outgoing Biden administration's envoy Brett McGurk was also there.
"The next 24 hours will be pivotal to reaching the deal," the official said, characterising the draft as the outcome of a breakthrough reached in the early hours of Monday.
Israel's Kan radio, citing an Israeli official, reported on Monday that Israeli and Hamas delegations in Qatar had both received a draft, and that the Israeli delegation had briefed Israel’s leaders. Israel, Hamas and the foreign ministry of Qatar did not respond to requests for confirmation or comment.
Officials on both sides, while stopping short of confirming that a final draft had been reached, described progress at the talks.
"The negotiation over some core issues made progress and we are working to conclude what remains soon," a Hamas official said on Monday, asking not to be identified due to the sensitivity of the matter.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said the negotiations were being coordinated between Biden's and Trump's teams. "There is progress, it looks much better than previously. I want to thank our American friends for the huge efforts they are investing to secure a hostage deal," Saar told a news conference.
The United States, Qatar and Egypt have worked for more than a year on talks to end the war in Gaza, so far fruitlessly. In Cairo, an Egyptian security official said the draft sent to the two warring sides did not comprise the final agreement but "aims to resolve outstanding issues that had hindered previous negotiations".
The warring sides have agreed for months broadly on the principle of halting the fighting in return for the release of captives and Palestinian detainees held by Israel. But Hamas has always insisted a deal must lead to a permanent end to the war and Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.
Trump's January 20 inauguration is now widely seen in the region as a de facto deadline. The president-elect has said there would be "hell to pay" unless captives are freed before he takes office, while outgoing President Biden has also pushed hard for a deal before he leaves.
The official who first disclosed the draft said talks went until the early hours of Monday, with Witkoff pushing the Israeli delegation in Doha and Qatari Prime Minister Shaikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al Thani pushing Hamas officials to finalise an agreement.
The head of Egypt's general intelligence agency Hassan Mahmoud Rashad was also in the Qatari capital as part of the talks. Rashad left Doha on Monday but an Egyptian source said the intelligence delegation stayed behind to play an active role. SEE ALSO P6
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