CAIRO (Palestine Foundation Information Center) The General Authority for Information in Egypt said in a message that a delegation from Hamas Movement arrived in Cairo on Friday to discuss the implementation of the ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip and to advance negotiations into the second phase.
The statement read: “Egypt is conducting intensive communications with all parties to quickly reach the second phase of the ceasefire. The intensive Egyptian meetings with Hamas leaders and communications with the American and Qatari sides aim to complete the ceasefire agreement and enter into its second phase.”
In this context, two officials from Hamas reported on Friday that a delegation from the Movement arrived in Cairo on the eve of discussions regarding the truce with Israel in the Gaza Strip. One official told AFP that “a high-level leadership delegation from Hamas, led by Mohammad Darwish, the acting head of the Movement, arrived in Cairo on Friday afternoon,” noting that they would meet “on Saturday with Egyptian officials to consult about the developments in the situation, the progress made in implementing the ceasefire agreement, and the commencement of the second phase.”
This comes after an Israeli security delegation visited Cairo and met with officials from the General Intelligence Service, according to Egyptian sources speaking to Al-Araby Al-Jadeed. They indicated that discussions with the Israeli delegation addressed the Egyptian vision for managing the Gaza Strip in the upcoming phase, as well as resuming the entry of aid and relief materials, advancing negotiations for the second phase of the ceasefire agreement, and mechanisms for releasing Israeli captives held by the resistance in the Gaza Strip.
The United States rejected the Egyptian proposal that was approved during the emergency Arab summit in Cairo last Tuesday, emphasizing that President Donald Trump remains committed to the displacement of Gaza Strip residents. U.S. National Security Council spokesperson Brian Yoo said that “the residents of the Gaza Strip cannot live humanely in a devastated area filled with unexploded ordnance.”
U.S. hostage affairs official Adam Boehler held talks with Hamas leadership in Qatar a few days ago, focusing on the return of American hostage Aidan Alexander (21 years old) and the bodies of four other captives. According to Axios, the discussions also addressed specific details such as the number of Palestinian prisoners to be released from Israeli jails in exchange for Alexander’s return, which were points not approved by Israel.
The Cairo meetings come at a time when the newly appointed chief of staff of the Israeli occupation army, Eyal Zamir, approved offensive plans after taking office on Wednesday, in preparation for the possibility of resuming the war of extermination against the besieged Gaza Strip. Yedioth Ahronoth reported on Friday that this step seems closer than ever, and according to various assessments, it will turn into an event that is difficult to contain or stop once carried out, while Haaretz spoke of skepticism among military officials regarding the feasibility of a large-scale attack and the refusal of reserve soldiers to return to combat.
