Truce talks begin as progress made on return of hostages

PEACE talks were under way in Cairo last night on a Gaza ceasefire deal that US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has called ‘a nobrainer’ for Hamas.

Hamas said its delegation flew in from Qatar in a ‘positive spirit’ after studying the truce proposal, which would see a halt to the fighting and hostages returned to Israel.

‘We are determined to secure an agreement in a way that fulfils Palestinians’ demands,’ said a communique from the negotiators for the Islamist militant group.

The main question appears to be whether the ceasefire deal would be permanent or temporary.

Taher Al-Nono, a Hamas official, said meetings with Egyptian and Qatari mediators had begun and Hamas was dealing with their proposals ‘with full seriousness’.

He reiterated the group’s demand that any deal should include Israel pulling out of Gaza and an end to the war – conditions that Israel has previously rejected.

An Israeli official said: ‘Israel will, under no circumstances, agree to ending the war as part of a deal to free our hostages.’

The war began after Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, killing 1,200 people and taking 252 hostages. More than 34,600 Palestinians have been killed and more than 77,000 wounded in Israel’s military operation, according to Gaza’s health ministry.

There was some optimism that a deal could be reached. ‘Things look better this time, but whether an agreement is on hand would depend on whether Israel has offered what it takes for that to happen,’ a Palestinian official told Reuters. Israel has given a preliminary nod to terms which one source said included the return of between 20 and 33 hostages in exchange for the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners and a weekslong suspension of fighting.

That would leave around 100 hostages in Gaza, some of whom have died in captivity, according to Israel. The source told Reuters their return may require an additional deal with broader Israeli concessions. ‘That could entail a de facto, if not formal, end to the war – unless Israel somehow recovers them through force or generates enough military pressure to make Hamas relent,’ the source said.

Egyptian sources said CIA director William Burns arrived in Cairo on Friday. He has been involved in previous truce talks, and Washington has signalled there may be progress this time, with Mr Blinken saying ‘taking the ceasefire should be a no-brainer’ for Hamas.

Meanwhile, Cindy McCain, the director of the UN World Food Programme, has said that the north of Gaza has tipped into a ‘full-blown famine’ that is heading towards the south. ‘It’s horror,’ she told NBC, adding that a ceasefire and a greater flow of aid was sorely needed.