An Israeli delegation left for Qatar on Sunday for talks on a possible Gaza hostage and ceasefire deal, an Israeli official said, hours before Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was due to head to Washington to meet U.

But it added: "In light of an assessment of the situation, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has directed that the invitation to proximity talks be accepted and that the contacts for the return of our hostages - on the basis of the Qatari proposal that Israel has agreed to - be continued. The negotiating team will leave tomorrow."