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Delegations from Hamas, the U.S. and Qatar reportedly arrived in Cairo on Sunday, raising hopes that a cease-fire agreement could be reached in the Israel-Gaza war.
The Hamas delegation is being headed by Khalil Al-Hayya, Hamas’ deputy chief in Gaza, a senior official told Reuters on Sunday. Egyptian and Israeli media reported that U.S. and Qatari officials arrived in Egypt after the Hamas delegation was reported in the capital.
An Israeli delegation is also hoped to arrive in Cairo Sunday to take part in negotiations, although one source briefed on the talks told Reuters Israel would not join until it received a list of hostages still alive.
Pressure for a cease-fire deal intensified last week after more than 100 civilians were killed during an aid delivery in Gaza, triggering outrage from European leaders.
The Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza said Israeli troops opened fire on a crowd of Palestinians on Thursday who were taking food from delivery trucks in Gaza City. Israel contests this, saying most of the injuries were caused by people stampeding toward the trucks for supplies.
Israel is under pressure to agree to a cease-fire with Hamas to bring an end to the conflict in Gaza that was triggered by an attack by the militant group on October 7. The Associated Press reported that Israel has essentially endorsed a framework of a proposed Gaza cease-fire and hostage-release deal, citing a senior U.S. administration official. The Israelis “have more or less accepted” the proposal, which includes a six-week cease-fire in Gaza as well as the release by Hamas of hostages considered to be vulnerable, the AP cited the official as saying.
U.S. President Joe Biden has said he hopes a cease-fire will be in place by the time of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, which starts on March 10.
Since then, Gaza’s health ministry says that Israel’s defense forces have killed more than 30,000 Palestinians and international leaders have become more critical of Israel’s retaliation. The United Nations has warned that a quarter of the population in Gaza are “one step away from famine,” saying civilians are depending on “woefully inadequate” food aid.
