CIA director returns to Middle East to push for hostage, cease-fire deal between Hamas and Israel

Washington — CIA Director William Burns quietly traveled to the Middle East and was in Doha, Qatar, on Friday to press the Biden administration's case for a hostage release deal between Hamas and Israel that would coincide with a six-week temporary pause in fighting to allow humanitarian aid to be surged into Gaza, multiple sources told CBS News.

Burns arrived in Doha on Thursday night ahead of meetings with Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani on Friday, having first traveled to Cairo for a round of talks with officials there.

The multi-stop trip has not involved a meeting of the "quad" — representatives from the U.S., Qatar, Egypt and Israel — in contrast to past talks, according to the sources, and Burns is not expected to stop in Israel. He is scheduled to testify Monday before the Senate Intelligence Committee for its annual hearing on worldwide threats.

The CIA declined to comment on the director's travel.

The Biden administration has been pressing for a hostage and cease-fire deal to be secured ahead of the start of the holy month of Ramadan, which begins on March 10. Both Israel and Hamas withdrew their delegations from talks earlier this week, while leaving open the possibility for continued negotiation.

News of Burns' travels comes one day after Mr. Biden announced he had ordered the U.S. military to construct a temporary port along the coast of Gaza to facilitate the transport of humanitarian aid. 

In his State of the Union address, the president said the port will "enable a massive increase in the amount of humanitarian assistance getting into Gaza every day." He added that Israel "must do its part" to alleviate the suffering of civilians in the Hamas-controlled Palestinian enclave.

"To the leadership of Israel I say this: Humanitarian assistance cannot be a secondary consideration or a bargaining chip," Mr. Biden said. "Protecting and saving innocent lives has to be a priority."

The president gave no timeline for when the port might be operational. The United Nations has warned that famine is imminent inside the 25-mile Gaza territory.

In the talks over releasing hostages and implementing a cease-fire, Egyptian intelligence has been a conduit to Hamas, and the Qataris have been a conduit to the militant group's political leadership.

Burns, a career diplomat before he took the helm at CIA, has been tapped by President Biden to lead the sensitive talks, and has traveled overseas at least six times for in-person consultations since the conflict erupted in October.

Hamas militants stormed southern Israel on Oct. 7, killing more than 1,000 people and abducting more than 250. Since then, Israel's retaliatory assault has resulted in the deaths of more than 30,000 people in Gaza, according to health authorities there.

In his State of the Union address, Mr. Biden acknowledged the high death toll and the displacement of another 2 million civilians, his most extensive remarks to date on the loss of Palestinian life.

Margaret Brennan

Margaret Brennan is moderator of CBS News' "Face The Nation" and CBS News' chief foreign affairs correspondent based in Washington, D.C.