Gaza war: Hamas delegation reviews Cairo talks ahead of extended round of talks, Palestinian official confirms lack of progress – BBC News Arabic

Two senior sources in the Hamas movement confirmed to the BBC that this delegation “will not be a party to the ongoing negotiations, but will only listen to the results of the mediators.”

Egyptian sources indicate that the talks are taking place seriously and that there is a solution to the tense situation of the different parties.

A US official said US negotiators met with officials from Egypt and Qatar on Saturday.

The French news agency quoted an Egyptian source as saying that an “extended” round of negotiations will begin on Sunday with the participation of Egyptian and Qatari officials, describing Sunday’s round as “necessary to draw up an agreement that will be announced if Washington succeeds in pressuring him. Netanyahu.”

The source explained that there are extensive talks in Cairo on Friday and Saturday to prepare for an extended round of negotiations that will begin on Sunday, stressing that Washington is “talking to the mediators about additional proposals to close the gaps.” between Israel and Hamas to close and methods of implementation. .”

Months of interim talks have not ended Israel’s devastating war in Gaza or freed Hamas’s remaining enemies since October 7.

The Egyptian sources said that the new proposals include settlements on unique points such as how to secure the main areas and the return of displaced Palestinians to northern Gaza.

Hamas accuses Israel of reneging on points it had previously agreed to in the talks, which have been denied by Israel, which Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu disputed with Israeli negotiators over the presence of Israeli forces on the border between Gaza and Egypt, according to a source familiar with the talks with Reuters.

The Israeli delegation left Cairo on Friday after providing the Egyptian side with maps of the proposed locations for the placement of Israeli forces in the Gaza Strip and the Philadelphia axis between Egypt and the Struggle, during the first phase of the ceasefire agreement, if an agreement is reached, while the Egyptian mediator will provide these maps for the representatives of the Hamas movement to express their opinion.

A member of the Hamas Political Bureau, Izzat al-Rishq, announced earlier today that the movement’s delegation to Cairo, led by Vice President Khalil al-Hayya, is coming in response to an Egyptian-Qatari invitation to listen to the results. of the discussions that took place in Cairo.

Al-Rishq explained in a statement made by the movement’s media platforms that Hamas “reaffirms its commitment to what it agreed on July 2, which is based on Biden’s declaration and the resolution of the Security Council.” “

Al-Rishq said: “As Hamas proves that it is willing to implement what was agreed, it wants to put pressure on the office and force it to implement that, and stop obstruction put on an agreement,” he said.

At the end of May last year, US President Joe Biden put forward a proposal for a cease-fire in Gaza, based on three stages in which Israel and Hamas negotiate an exchange of hostages, a permanent cessation of hostilities , and rebuilding the Strip.

Axios reported on Friday that US President Joe Biden asked Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to withdraw Israeli forces from the Gaza border with Egypt as part of the first phase of the ceasefire agreement, so that the discussions.

Three Israeli officials told the American website Axios that Netanyahu partially accepted Biden’s request, which he mentioned in his call on Wednesday, and agreed to hand over a site controlled by Israeli forces on the border between Egypt and Gaza.

Washington confirmed on Friday that CIA Director William Burns had arrived in Cairo to take part in the talks, noting that “progress had been made” in preliminary talks ahead of the extended talks.

For his part, a leader in the Hamas movement announced to Agence France-Presse that “the leaders of Hamas, including the leader of the movement, have decided that the reference should be trusted in the July 2 plan, which Hamas approved,” emphasizing in the context that “the position of Hamas and the resistance groups is attached to the implementation of the plan. ” “It is not negotiable.

The head of Hamas, Hossam Badran, said, “The way Netanyahu asked the occupying forces to keep the axes of Martyrs Road (Netzarim) and Salah al-Din and the border strip with Egypt (Philadelphia) shows the intentions of the person -a position to continue the attack and war of destruction and not reach a final agreement,” as he said.

Badran told Agence France-Presse on Friday: “We will not accept anything less than the withdrawal of the occupying forces, including from the axis of Philadelphia and Netzarim,” holding Washington “responsible for the pressure of forced Netanyahu to achieve a ceasefire. “

Israel wants any agreement it signs to guarantee freedom to resume military operations in Gaza if it deems necessary, as well as maintaining a military presence in the Strip and the use of his forces on the “Netzarim axis” and on the border between Egypt and Gaza.

At the same time, Hamas wants a complete end to hostilities, allowing Gazans to move freely to the north, and the removal of Israeli forces from the border with Egypt.