Netanyahu, CIA chief discuss halting Israeli offensive in Rafah for hostage release

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held talks with CIA Director William Burns on Wednesday amid an Israeli offensive in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, according to Israeli media.

The two sides explored the possibility of Israel halting its ongoing onslaught in Rafah in return for the release of hostages held by Hamas, Haaretz said, citing an Israeli official.

The meeting, held at Netanyahu's office in West Jerusalem, was attended by Israeli Mossad chief David Barnea.

Burns arrived in Israel early Wednesday for talks aimed at reaching a Gaza cease-fire and hostage swap between Tel Aviv and Hamas.

"There are still significant gaps in the negotiations on the hostage deal in Gaza," Walla news portal said, citing an Israeli official.

An Israeli negotiating team arrived in Egypt on Tuesday for talks on reaching a cease-fire agreement with Hamas.

Hamas said on Monday evening that it had accepted a Gaza cease-fire proposal drawn by Egypt and Qatar.

But Israel said the truce offer accepted by Hamas did not meet its key demands and decided to push ahead with an operation in Rafah in order to apply what it said "military pressure on Hamas with the goal of making progress on freeing the hostages and the other war aims."

Israel has pounded the Gaza Strip in retaliation for an Oct. 7 attack by Hamas which killed about 1,200 people. More than 34,800 Palestinians have since been killed in Gaza, the vast majority of whom have been women and children, and 78,400 others injured, according to Palestinian health authorities.

Over seven months into the Israeli war, vast swathes of Gaza lay in ruins, pushing 85% of the enclave's population into internal displacement amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water, and medicine, according to the UN.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January said it is "plausible" that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza and ordered Tel Aviv to stop such acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.