Israeli negotiators attending ceasefire and hostage release talks in Doha have expressed “cautious optimism,” even as some gaps between both sides persist, a source familiar with the matter told CNN.

Israel will send the chief of its Mossad intelligence agency to Qatar to continue talks over a potential ceasefire-for-hostages deal in Gaza, in a possible sign the negotiations may be advancing.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is sending the director of the Mossad foreign intelligence agency to ceasefire negotiations in Qatar in a sign of progress in talks on the war in Gaza