Gaza ceasefire talks to resume in Cairo
PALESTINIAN TERRITORIES (AFP) – Talks aimed at brokering a truce between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip will resume in Cairo today, Egyptian outlet Al-Qahera reported, days after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave the green light for fresh negotiations.
“An Egyptian security source confirmed to Al-Qahera News the resumption of negotiations on a truce between Israel and Hamas in the Egyptian capital Cairo today,” an anchor for the channel, which is close to the country’s intelligence services, said in a broadcast on Sunday.
Egypt, Qatar and key Israeli ally the United States have mediated previous rounds of negotiations, but a workable agreement has remained elusive.
The mediators had hoped to secure a ceasefire before the start of Ramadan, but progress stalled and the Muslim holy month is more than half over.
On Friday, Netanyahu approved a new round of ceasefire negotiations to take place in Doha and Cairo.
His office said the Israeli premier had spoken to Mossad chief David Barnea about the talks, but did not elaborate on whether Barnea would be traveling to either city.
Reports of the new talks in Cairo came as demonstrators in Israel’s biggest city blocked a major road Saturday following protests calling for the release of hostages held in Gaza and criticizing the government’s handling of the war.
Militants seized about 250 hostages during the Oct. 7 attacks on Israel that sparked the war. Of those, Israel believes 130 remain in Gaza, including 33 who are presumed dead.
A key element of the ceasefire negotiations has been an agreement on releasing the hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners held in Israel.
France’s top diplomat was also in Cairo on Sunday for meetings with his Egyptian and Jordanian counterparts, with all three calling for an “immediate and permanent ceasefire” in Gaza and the release of all the hostages.
French Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne also said his government would put forward a draft resolution at the UN Security Council setting out a “political” settlement of the war that would include “all the criteria for a two-state solution” to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.