An Israeli delegation on ceasefire and hostage negotiations will likely be sent to Qatar on Thursday, after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held discussions on the matter with members of his negotiating team and security officials, an official statement said on Sunday.
One Israeli official told the Israeli website Walla that Netanyahu held a four-hour meeting on Sunday, where he ordered the delegation "not to budge" from four non-negotiable demands he made on 7 July, including Israel resuming fighting in Gaza - something previously rejected by Hamas.
Netanyahu is due in Washington on Monday, where he will address US Congress. The Israeli prime minister has also instructed the delegation to stick to the six-week truce proposal that was was outlined by President Joe Biden in May.
Among Netanyahu's non-negotiable demands include Israel retaining control of the border between war-hit Gaza and Egypt, known as the Philadelphi Corridor, blocking any weapons smuggling from Egypt into Gaza and stopping "the return of thousands of armed terrorists to the north of the Gaza Strip".
A number of security officials were reportedly "shocked" by Netanyahu's non-negotiable demands, one official telling Israeli media that Netanyahu's statement was "inappropriate conduct that will harm the chances of bringing the hostages back home".
Following the early July ceasefire talks in Cairo, Hamas seemingly watered down some of its conditions, including a demand that Israel completely halts the war and withdraws from the Gaza Strip.
The official also said that Netanyahu, set to return to Israel on Thursday, wants to first secure staunch ally Biden’s blessing for a "tough" Israeli position based on the premier’s non-negotiable demands.
Meanwhile, the Kan public broadcaster reported Sunday that Israel was "scrambling to draft its latest response in the talks before Netanyahu took off for the US".
Defence Minister Yoav Gallant responded on X: "There is a limited window of opportunity for a deal to release the hostages. Even if there are disagreements, the entire security establishment has your back in the mission to bring about an agreement.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, using an American football terminology, expressed enthusiasm regarding negotiations on Friday, saying there were "inside the 10 yard line and driving toward the goal line", but added that "there are still some problems that need to be resolved and negotiated".
Energy Minister Eli Cohen told Israeli Channel 12 on Sunday that a "deal could be signed within two weeks".
The upcoming round of talks comes as international mediators, acting on behalf of Israel and Hamas, have held multiple discussion sessions on reaching a ceasefire deal between Israel and the Palestinian group over the course of the past few months but have yielded little to no results, with Israel continuing its daily bombardment of Gaza.
In November, however, a week-long ceasefire saw a halt in fighting, the release of several Israeli hostages and Palestinian detainees, including prominent activist Ahed Tamimi.
Israel has waged a deadly war in the enclave for over nine months, killing at least 39,006 Palestinians since 7 October.
Throughout the war, Israel has relentlessly targeted residential buildings, hospitals and schools, in actions described as a "genocide" and "war crimes" by several rights groups, UN agencies and several world leaders.
Ahead of his departure to the US, demonstrators protested on Sunday at Ben Gurion Airport, demanding that Netanyahu remains in Israel to sign a hostage-release deal, rather than leaving for the United States.
Netanyahu’s handling of the truce talks has been criticised in Israel as the war persists, with large numbers of protesters frequently accusing him of not doing enough to ensure the captives' return. The Israeli premier has also been accused of purposefully prolonging the war in Gaza in a bid to cling onto power as head of the country's far-right coalition government.
According to a recent poll, around 70 percent of Israelis believe that Netanyahu is "very" or "somewhat" responsible for failing to reach a deal that would secure the release the remainder of the captives, Haaretz reported on Sunday.
Some 116 people are still believed to be held in Gaza, with the Israeli army estimating that 42 of them are dead.