Senior Hamas delegation arrives in Cairo to hold talks with Egyptian officials for ceasefire agreement

CAIRO(Egypt): A senior Hamas delegation arrived in Cairo on Saturday for talks with Egyptian officials to broker a ceasefire agreement, CNN reported.

An Egyptian official told CNN that the Israel has been invited to meet with negotiators on Monday. It’s unclear if Israel has accepted the invitation.

The delegation, headed by Hamas Leadership Council chairman Muhammad Darwish, includes other key leaders, including Zaher Jabarin, Khaled Meshaal, Khalil al-Hayya, and Eng Nizar Awadallah.

In a written statement on Saturday, Hamas said, “The delegation began meetings with Egyptian officials to discuss Hamas’s vision for a ceasefire and an end to the war and a prisoner exchange based on a comprehensive deal.”

According to the statement, the talks will address the effect of what Hamas termed Israel’s “starvation tactics” against Palestinians in Gaza and the urgent need to deliver humanitarian aid, food and medical supplies to Gaza.

On March 2, Israel imposed a complete humanitarian blockade on Gaza, stopping the entry of food, medicine and other items from entering the besieged territory.

Speaking to CNN, an Egyptian official said that Israel has been invited to meet negotiators on Monday. It is not clear whether Israel has agreed to come or not.

An Israeli source familiar with the matter told CNN that Israel has not received a new offer from the mediators for now. “Israel only reacts to offers passed on by the mediators,” the source said.

Earlier this week, Mossad head David Barnea was in Qatar’s capital, Doha, for ceasefire talks. So far, there is no clear indication of a breakthrough.

On Friday, US President Donald Trump said he had told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, “We’ve got to be good to Gaza,” CNN reported.

Speaking to reporters while heading to Italy, Trump said, “There’s a very big need for medicine, food and medicine. We’re taking care of it.” The Trump administration, which has been supporting Israel, has provided no details regarding what steps the US is taking to allow the humanitarian aid to enter Gaza.

Netanyahu and other officials have maintained that the humanitarian aid blockade in Gaza has been imposed as part of a pressure campaign against Hamas, along with Israel’s increased bombardment of Gaza to destroy Hamas and bring back 59 Israeli hostages.

Earlier this month, Israel presented a ceasefire proposal that called for the disarmament of Gaza without guaranteeing an end to the war.
According to the Palestinian Health Ministry, over 2111 Palestinians have been killed since Israel resumed its war in Gaza on March 18.

Meanwhile, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has called Hamas “sons of dogs” and called for the disarmament of the group and the release of the Israeli hostages, CNN reported.

He called for stopping the “Israeli genocide that the Gaza Strip is being subjected to” a top priority. He said that the hostages present an excuse for Israel to attack the Gaza Strip.

In a televised speech from Ramallah on April 23, Abbas said, “Sons of dogs, release the hostages and block their justifications.”Israel has rejected accusations of genocide, stressing that it is fighting the war in Gaza in self-defence and targets Hamas.

He also outlined a vision to create a Palestinian state and demanded an end to the war in Gaza and renewed calls for the unification of Palestinian political factions under the umbrella of the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO).

He also called for the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza. He accused Hamas of inflicting “severe damage to the Palestinian cause” since it took control of the Gaza Strip in 2007. (ANI)