Israel says Gaza ceasefire talks in Paris 'constructive' but 'gaps remain'

JERUSALEM - Israel said Sunday that the discussions in Paris involving top US, Qatari, Egyptian and Israeli officials on a ceasefire in Gaza have adjourned, delivering "constructive" results.

"The meeting was defined as a constructive meeting," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said in a statement while noting that "significant gaps" remain and will be further discussed this week in additional meetings.

According to the office, the "intelligence summit" in Paris was attended by the director of the US Central Intelligence Agency, the Qatari prime minister, and the Egyptian intelligence minister. The Israeli delegation is led by David Barnea, chief of the Mossad intelligence agency, and Ronen Bar, head of the Shin Bet internal security agency.

The meeting is aimed at achieving a deal to end the conflict between Israel and the Hamas movement. Netanyahu has repeatedly stated that his government will not agree to a ceasefire deal while Hamas remains in power in Gaza, and the Israeli military escalation in the Palestinian enclave aims to "eliminate" Hamas.

Israel launched a massive offensive in Gaza on Oct 7, 2023, in response to an assault by Hamas on southern Israeli communities, in which Hamas militants killed about 1,200 people and took more than 200 as hostages. Currently, over 100 hostages are still held in Gaza by Hamas and other militant groups in the strip.

The deadly conflict has led to a Palestinian death toll of 26,422 in Gaza, with the number of injuries rising to 65,087, according to the Gaza-based Health Ministry on Sunday.