Qatar hopes US retaliation won't undercut hostage talks
Qatar's Prime Minister expressed hope that U.S. retaliation for a drone attack in Jordan, which killed three U.S. troops, would not jeopardize progress in talks aimed at securing a new Israel-Hamas hostage release deal. CIA Director William Burns participated in constructive talks with Qatari and Israeli officials, as well as the head of Egyptian intelligence.
- Middle East
- Reuters
- Published Date: 10:11 | 29 January 2024
- Modified Date: 10:12 | 29 January 2024
Qatar's prime minister on Monday said he hoped U.S. retaliation for an attack that killed three U.S. troops in Jordan would not undercut progress toward a new Israel-Hamas hostage release deal in weekend talks.
"I hope that nothing would undermine the efforts that we are doing or jeopardize the process," Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim al Thani told a Washington think tank audience when asked if U.S. retaliation for a drone attack by Iran-backed militants could scuttle an emerging deal.
CIA Director William Burns met Sheikh Mohammed, as well as the head of Israel's Mossad intelligence service and the head of Egyptian intelligence on Sunday, in talks described as constructive by Israel, Qatar and the United States, albeit with significant gaps remaining.
U.S. President Joe Biden has been trying to facilitate the release of the more than 100 hostages who remain captive after Oct. 7.
Israel has since unleashed a torrent of strikes on Gaza that have flattened most of the Palestinian enclave and killed more than 26,000 people, Palestinian health officials say.