Senior Israeli hostage negotiator resigns over stalled hostage talks

By Zein Khalil

JERUSALEM (AA) - A senior member of Israel’s negotiating team resigned Monday over stalled progress in talks aimed at reaching a cease-fire and prisoner exchange deal with the Palestinian group Hamas, the Israeli public broadcaster KAN reported.

Brig. Gen. Oren Setter, deputy to Maj. Gen. (ret) Nitzan Alon, the military’s lead negotiator, unexpectedly stepped down.

Early Monday, David Barnea, the director of Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency, returned from the Qatari capital Doha, with sources indicating that if there had been any prospect of a breakthrough, “this dramatic resignation might not have happened,” KAN added.

Israel confirmed Barnea’s return from Doha following discussions on a “new unified framework that integrates previous proposals and also takes into account the main issues and recent developments in the region,” according to a statement from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office.

During his visit, Barnea held talks with Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani and US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Director William Burns.

Mediation efforts led by the US, Egypt and Qatar have so far failed to achieve a cease-fire in Gaza, but Washington maintains that Israel’s killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar on Oct. 18 may lead to a breakthrough in talks.

Hamas, however, says the conflict will only end when Israel stops its military campaign in the enclave, which has killed over 43,000 people since last October.