Israel to send delegations for new round of Gaza ceasefire talks

JERUSALEM, March 29 (Xinhua) -- Israel is ready to send delegations to Qatar and Egypt for negotiations on a Gaza ceasefire deal, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said in a statement on Friday.

After speaking with David Barnea, head of the Israeli Mossad intelligence agency, and Ronen Bar, chief of the internal security agency Shin Bet, Netanyahu approved the next round of talks "with guidelines for moving forward in the negotiations," according to the statement.

The new round of talks will be held in Doha and Cairo in the coming days, it added.

Israel withdrew most of its negotiating team from Doha on Tuesday after Hamas rejected the latest offer, while a small, mid-ranking Mossad team remained in Qatar for negotiations, Israeli media reported.