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The U.S. and Qatar are trying to revive cease-fire talks for Gaza now that Israel has killed the leader of Hamas. Negotiations are set to resume in Doha early next week, but it's not clear what kind of deal Hamas is ready to accept as Israel presses its offensive in Northern Gaza. NPR's Michele Kelemen reports.
MICHELE KELEMEN, BYLINE: Secretary of State Antony Blinken believes the death of Yahya Sinwar could clear the way for a deal that would get hostages out of Gaza and pave the way for an end to the war.
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ANTONY BLINKEN: The reason I believe there's opportunity now is because the biggest obstacle to concluding that agreement was Sinwar. And the fact that he is no longer with us perhaps creates an opening.
KELEMEN: Qatar's prime minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, would not point fingers or say why the talks have failed so far, but he says he's been reengaging with the Hamas office in Doha.
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PRIME MINISTER MOHAMMED BIN ABDULRAHMAN AL THANI: Until now, there is no clarity what will be the way forward or the clear position. But the position that we had with us - at least throughout the meeting or what we have sensed - it was the same position as the last paper stated. And basically, I think this would be their starting point.
KELEMEN: The paper he mentioned was Hamas' response in July to President Biden's three-part plan to end the war. The U.S., Egypt and Qatar spent weeks trying to bridge the gaps between Hamas and Israel on that plan. In late July, Israel killed a key Hamas negotiator, Ismail Haniyeh, in Iran. By late August, Hamas had killed six of its hostages, and the talks ground to a halt. Families of the hostages still held in Gaza are urging Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to reach a deal before it's too late. Secretary Blinken says he talked to Netanyahu about that this week, and he raised concerns about the current Israeli military operation in northern Gaza.
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BLINKEN: We reject any effort to create a siege, to starve people, to hive off northern Gaza from the rest of Gaza. We've been very clear about that.
KELEMEN: He says Netanyahu assured him that this is not Israel's policy. Netanyahu's office says Israel's spy chief will travel to Doha Sunday to meet the prime minister of Qatar and CIA Director William Burns to talk about a hostage deal.
Michele Kelemen, NPR News, the State Department.
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