Qatar quietly asked Hamas leaders to leave Doha last month amid frustration with the terror group’s handling of the hostage negotiations, two government officials told @TimesofIsrael this week. (1/15)
timesofisrael.com/qatar-briefly-… This was the first time since the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war that Qatar took such a step, aiming to pressure the terror organization to agree to a compromise in talks that have yet to bear fruit since a weeklong hostages-for-truce deal in late November. (2/15)

The UN’s special representative on sexual violence in conflict Pramila Patten pulled out of a Security Council session where she was supposed to brief members about the hostages taken by Hamas on October 7, a UN diplomat told @TimesofIsrael (1/5)
timesofisrael.com/un-sexual-viol… Invitations to the Thursday event organized by the US Mission the UN were sent to Security Council members last week and obtained by @TimesofIsrael The session is titled “Condemning hostage taking in Israel on October 7 as a psychological tool of terrorism.” (2/5)

The US aims to wrap up Gaza war. How does that square with its goal of toppling Hamas?

The US hasn't directly addressed this apparent dissonance, but two US officials and two other sources familiar offered some more clarity to @TimesofIsrael (1/18)
timesofisrael.com/the-us-aims-to… “The goal is for Hamas to be severely weakened when the dust settles, i.e., incapable of carrying out another attack like the one [it] launched on October 7,” the first US official said. (2/18)

Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar is not hiding in Rafah, two officials familiar with the matter tell @TimesofIsrael as the IDF moves to expand its operations in Gaza’s southernmost city. (1/12)
timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry… Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has elevated a potential IDF operation in Rafah to the top of his public agenda, but targeting Hamas’s leadership is believed to still be a major Israeli war aim as well. (2/12)

In bluntest threat yet, Biden says Israel will have to choose between Rafah op, US arms

How we got here: 🧵

(1/18)
timesofisrael.com/in-bluntest-th… For months, the US said it could not support a major Rafah offensive without a credible plan in place to ensure that civilians there would be protected. To date, Israel has yet to present such a full-fledged plan to US, which contributed to shift in Biden’s approach (2/18)

The Biden administration confirms reports that it held up a shipment last week of 2,000 and 500-pound bombs that it feared Israel might use in a major ground operation in Rafah. (1/11) Washington adamantly opposes a major offensive in the southern city of Gaza, convinced that there is no way for Israel to conduct one in a manner that would ensure the safety of the over million Palestinians sheltering there. (2/11)

Qatar is prepared to accept a request from the US for it to expel Hamas’s leaders from Doha and is anticipating one could be made soon, a source familiar with the matter tells @TimesofIsrael (1/6) US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told Qatar’s Prime Minister Mohammed Al Thani last month that Doha should expel Hamas’s leaders if the terror group continues to reject hostage deal proposals, a US official says, confirming reporting in the Washington Post. (2/6)

🧵New: The Biden admin is divided on whether Netanyahu will be prepared to accept the Palestinian component of the Saudi normalization deal, which it has managed to continue negotiating amid the Gaza war, three US officials tell @TimesofIsrael (1/23)
timesofisrael.com/us-split-over-… The details of what the Palestinian element of the deal will be are still being finalized, but it will require Israel to take concrete steps aimed at establishing a pathway to an eventual Palestinian state, the officials said. (2/23)

🧵 New: Jordan’s King Abdullah asked US President Joe Biden during a call over the weekend to urge Israel not to use Amman’s airspace in a counter-strike against Iran, three officials familiar with the matter tell @TimesofIsrael (1/7) timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry… Given how critical Hashemite kingdom has been of Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza, Jordan was arguably the most notable member of the US-led coalition that joined the IDF in shooting down the over 300 missiles and drones Iran fired at the Jewish state on Saturday night (2/7)

A senior Israeli official tells @TimesofIsrael that Hamas’s latest response in the negotiations w/ Israel rejected every single clause of the hostage/truce proposal crafted by US, Qatari and Egyptian mediators. (1/5) Hamas demands release of Israeli hostages in deal’s 1st stage be conditioned on negotiators providing guarantees that in 2nd stage Israel will agree perm ceasefire, complete IDF withdrawal from Gaza & unrestricted return of Palestinians to the north, Israeli official says. (2/5)

🧵New: Government officials and analysts who spoke with @timeofisrael pointed to a series of factors that helped explain why the flashpoint city managed to defy Haniyeh’s hopes and Biden’s fears of violence in Jerusalem over Ramadan (1/20)
timesofisrael.com/despite-hamass… They pointed to a more limited degree of active Hamas support among Palestinians than originally assumed; the sidelining of National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir during Ramadan security prep and cooperation from Jordan, which helped foster calm on the Temple Mount. (2/20)

US President Joe Biden has called on Israel to unilaterally agree to a six-to-eight week ceasefire, in an apparent retreat from his administration’s stance that conditioned a truce in Gaza on Hamas releasing some of the hostages it’s holding in the Strip. (1/11) “What I’m calling for is for the Israelis to just call for a ceasefire, allow for the next six, eight weeks, total access to all food and medicine going into the country,” Biden tells the Univision, a US Spanish-language TV network. (2/11)

The mediators of the hostage deal between Israel and Hamas are failing to exert any pressure on the terror group, a senior Israeli official tells @timesofisrael (1/5) While reports earlier today said that Hamas turned down Israel’s latest hostage deal proposal, the senior Israeli official maintains that Jerusalem has still not received any answer from the group. (2/5)

🧵NEW: Qatari PM al-Thani told Mossad chief Barnea in recent meeting that Doha isn't inclined to heed Israeli requests to assist in Gaza reconstruction, given Jerusalem's treatment of Qatar throughout war, two officials familiar tell @TimesofIsrael (1/16) timesofisrael.com/qatar-not-incl… Some in Israel's security establishment have expressed desire to distance Qatar post-war, but al-Thani's statement would further shrink the list of countries willing to assist in the revitalization of Gaza after the war, which could leave Jeru w/o partners in the effort. (2/16)

US President Biden indicates to Prime Minister Netanyahu during a phone call that Washington's policy regarding the war in Gaza will fundamentally change if Israel doesn't implement a series of concrete steps to address the humanitarian crisis and protect aid workers. (1/7) Biden "made clear the need for Israel to announce and implement a series of specific, concrete and measurable steps to address civilian harm, humanitarian suffering and the safety of aid workers," per White House readout after their 1st call since IDF strike on WCK convoy (2/7)

🧵The Palestinian Authority is in the final stages of talks with the Biden administration about reforming its controversial welfare policy, which includes payments to terrorists and their families, a US official told The Times of Israel on Friday. (1/X) timesofisrael.com/pa-in-final-st… Drafts of the policy have been vetted by the administration’s lawyers and the reform was on track to be announced in the coming weeks, the official said, confirming @nahaltoosi's reporting in Politico.

🧵The US sent a letter to the Israeli Finance Min earlier this week informing it that sanctions imposed against violent settlers earlier this year were not intended to compel Israeli banks to close the accounts of targeted individuals, Israeli official tells @TimesofIsrael (1/7) Several major banks took this step in order to avoid violating the sanctions, which the Biden administration began issuing earlier this year after determining that the Israeli government was systematically failing to clamp down on settler violence. (2/7)

🧵Exclusive: Series of docs obtained by @TimesofIsrael reveal how top Israeli officials sought out and expressed their appreciation for Qatari aid to Gaza in the years and months leading up to Hamas’s October 7 attacks (1/12) timesofisrael.com/documents-show… “This aid has undoubtedly played a fundamental role in achieving the continued improvement of the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip and ensuring stability and security in the region,” then Mossad chief Yossi Cohen wrote in a 2020 letter to Qatar’s Emir (2/12)

UNRWA has been providing Israel with a list of its employees in Gaza every year and did not receive any pushback from Jerusalem, which maintained in January that 10% of agency members are tied to Hamas group, a spx for the agency tells @TimesofIsrael (1/5)
timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry… “Every year, UNRWA provides the lists of all its staff to host countries across the region. In the context of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, UNRWA submits the lists of its staff to the State of Israel as the occupying power,” UNRWA spx Juliette Touma says. (2/5)

🧵NEW: Saudi is hosting a summit of foreign ministers from 5 countries in region Thursday to advance united Arab stance regarding Gaza war as well as political initiatives for when fighting ends, two senior Arab diplomats revealed to @TimesofIsrael (1/14) timesofisrael.com/riyadh-to-host… Participants to discuss upping ceasefire, leveraging willingness to take part in Gaza rebuilding in addition to further integrating Israel into region, on condition that Israel take steps creating irreversible pathway to eventual Palestinian state, the diplomas said. (2/14)

🧵New: US concerned Ben Gvir will try & spark tensions at flashpoint Temple Mount during Ramadan next month in what could drag Jeru into ongoing Mideast conflict it’s seeking to contain, a US official and an Israeli official told @TimesofIsrael (1/15) timesofisrael.com/us-wary-ben-gv… The US is worried that Ben Gvir will again visit the Temple Mount during Ramadan, which begins around March 10, the officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity. (2/15)