Discord/consensus near? Key themes of the Hamas chief’s ceasefire negotiations in Egypt
Ismail Haniyeh, the leader of Hamas, who is located in Qatar, traveled to Cairo to discuss prisoner exchanges and a truce in the midst of Israel’s conflict in Gaza. According to a statement released by Hamas and obtained by the news agency AFP, Ismail Haniyeh arrived “in the Egyptian capital Cairo to hold discussions with Egyptian officials over the developments of the Zionist (Israeli) aggression on the Gaza Strip and other matters”.
Prior to traveling to Cairo, Ismail Haniyeh also visited Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, the Iranian foreign minister, in Doha, as was previously reported. But there was little information available about the encounter.
Ismail Haniyeh will lead a “high-level” Hamas team to Egypt, where he is expected to have discussions with Egyptian intelligence director Abbas Kamel among others, according to an AFP story that cited a Hamas-affiliated source. The article said that the talks would center on “ending the war and the aggression to prepare an agreement for the release of prisoners (and) the end of the siege imposed on the Gaza Strip.”
Ziad Nakhaleh, the head of Hamas, is also anticipated in Cairo early next week, according to a source close to the Islamic Jihad faction that fights with Hamas in Gaza, as reported by AFP. Videos of what both factions said were captives still being held in Gaza were previously shared online.
What happened during the last ceasefire
In return for 240 Palestinians detained in Israeli prisons, 80 Israeli hostages were released during a week-long ceasefire that ended late last month. With assistance from Egypt and the US, Qatar mediated the agreement.
This time around, as talks begin, Egypt and Qatar are assisting in mediating a week-long cease-fire. However, reports suggested that the two sides were still far from reaching a consensus.
The president of Israel remarked on the ceasefire
Isaac Herzog, the president of Israel, expressed his willingness to establish a ceasefire in Gaza in order to free the hostages that Hamas had taken.
According to the news agency Reuters, Isaac Herzog said, “Israel is ready for another humanitarian pause and additional humanitarian aid in order to enable the release of hostages,” and that “the responsibility lies fully with (Hamas leader Yahya) Sinwar and (other) Hamas leadership.”
