by Nidal al-Mughrabi and Bassam Masoud
CAIRO/RAFAH, Gaza Strip (Reuters) – Hamas and Egyptian mediators said on Monday they were continuing talks in Cairo on the establishment of a ceasefire in Gaza despite the absence of Israel, which did not wish to send a delegation.
The talks, which began on Sunday, are seen as the last step before the conclusion of the first long-term ceasefire in the conflict which began on October 7, before the month of Ramadan, which begins on Sunday.
Israel has made no comment on the Cairo negotiations, including its decision not to participate. According to one source, Israel chose to abstain due to Hamas’s refusal to provide a list of surviving hostages before the terms of the truce were agreed.
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“The talks in Cairo continue for the second day, whether or not the occupier delegation is present in Egypt,” a Hamas official told Reuters on Monday.
Two Egyptian security sources said the mediators were in contact with the Israeli side, allowing negotiations to continue despite the delegates’ absence.
According to a Palestinian source close to the negotiations, the discussions remain “difficult”, with Israel sticking to its request for a temporary truce to free the hostages, and Hamas seeking guarantees that the war will not resume.
Washington, Israel’s main ally and sponsor of the negotiations, believes that an agreement is close.
The proposal under discussion concerns a truce of around 40 days, during which Hamas would release around forty hostages out of the hundred held in Gaza, in exchange for around 400 prisoners held in Israeli prisons.
Israeli troops would withdraw from parts of the Gaza enclave, humanitarian aid would be allowed into the territory and displaced residents would be able to return to their homes.
Israel says it will not end the war until Hamas is eradicated. The Palestinian movement, for its part, declares that it will not release all the hostages without an agreement ending the war.
According to Egyptian security sources, the mediators are trying to bridge the gap by offering guarantees to Hamas on future peace talks and to Israel on the safety of the hostages.
A Palestinian official close to the negotiations disputed the US assertion that Israel had already approved the deal and that Hamas would delay it, saying the remarks were intended to shift responsibility away from Israel if the talks failed.
“The Palestinian resistance, led by Hamas, has demonstrated the necessary flexibility, while being determined to defend its people,” the official said.
(Reporting by Nidal al-Mughrabi in Cairo, Bassam Massoud in Rafah, with contributions from James Mackenzie in Jerusalem and Jeff Mason in Washington, written by Peter Graff; French version Dagmarah Mackos)
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