CIA Director William "Bill" Burns was in Doha, Qatar recently, to discuss the ongoing Israeli war against Hamas with Qatari officials. He was pushing for a broader hostage deal that would expand beyond freeing women and children only, to include negotiations for men and soldiers. And Burns was joined in Doha by David Barney, Director of Israel's Institute for Intelligence and Special Operations, or Mossad, and Abbas Kamel, the Director of Egyptian General Intelligence.

Burns' trip came as Abigail Edan, the 4-year-old American dual citizen abducted by Hamas on October 7, was released, marking the first successful release of an American hostage since the start of the truce between Israel and Hamas. This follows a trip by Burns to Doha on November 9, when he met with Qatari leaders and David Barnea to go over the “emerging arrangement,” a senior US administration official said.

Other positive signs of a possible Israel - Hamas temporary peace deal: The US military delivered three planeloads of crucial humanitarian aid to North Sinai in Egypt, to be brought into Gaza to aid civilians in the region, according to senior administration officials. The aid being delivered included medical supplies, food and winter weather gear as Gaza enters its rainy season, which can be wet, cold and even lead to flooding. As a USAID spokesperson said recently: "With 1.7 million people internally displaced and 2.2 million in need of humanitarian assistance, increased humanitarian supplies are essential to saving lives and alleviating suffering for the most vulnerable."

Unfortunately, there are still roughly 150 hostages sill being currently being held in Gaza by Hamas, including Americans. And there was also only limited humanitarian aid being allowed to flow into Gaza.

This Friday, 8 December 2023, at 12:00 pm EST, I will post on-line a proposed 3-part peace plan, focusing on how to achieve a second and longer ceasefire in the Israel - Hamas conflict. This carefully-crafted peace plan, called The Israel-Hamas Peace Accord, will focus on 3 issues:

1. Achieving a 21-day second cease-fire, beginning on 11 December 2023;
2. Achieving a release of all hostages being held by Hamas in Gaza; and
3. Increased humanitarian assistance to Gaza, coming from the US, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, and spread over the 21-day cease fire.

Carl Hobert

Author, Raising Global IQ: Preparing Our Students for a Shrinking Planet (Beacon Press)