CAIRO (Reuters) – A Hamas official told Reuters on Monday that no progress was made at a new round of Gaza ceasefire talks in Cairo also attended by delegations from Israel, Qatar and the United States.
“There is no change in the position of the occupation and therefore, there is nothing new in the Cairo talks,” the Hamas official, who asked not to be named, told Reuters. “There is no progress yet,” he added.
Earlier on Monday, Egypt’s state-affiliated Al-Qahera News TV channel quoted a senior Egyptian source as saying progress had been made in the talks, after a deal was reached among participating delegations on issues under discussion.
Israel and Hamas sent teams to Egypt on Sunday after the arrival on Saturday of CIA Director William Burns, whose presence underlined U.S. pressure for a deal that would free hostages held in Gaza and ease the humanitarian crisis there. Israel and Hamas, at war in the Gaza Strip since October, have failed so far to resolve disagreements over their main demands. Hamas wants an end to Israel’s offensive and a full Israeli withdrawal from the shattered territory, while Israel wants a deal to free hostages from Gaza in exchange for a number of Palestinians in its jails without a commitment to end the war.
Israel to reportedly know proposal feasibility by Tuesday
The Israeli party involved in negotiations with Hamas for a ceasefire and hostage exchange will know the feasibility of progressing with the new proposal by Tuesday evening, Sky News Arabia reported on Monday. “Washington and Cairo put forward a new proposal that includes signals related to the return of Gaza residents to the northern Gaza Strip,” the media added. This aspect is one of the key points emphasized by Hamas in the agreement. In response to this development, Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to convene an urgent expanded government meeting. NN: Obviously talks are at a critical stage. The global pressure is intense. I believe a deal is close.