Israeli intelligence chief visits Egypt for talks on possible truce in Gaza - media
Kyiv • UNN
An Israeli delegation headed by David Barnea visits Egypt for talks on a possible truce in Gaza. The parties remain divided over the terms of a ceasefire, but negotiations continue.
An Israeli delegation headed by the country's intelligence chief, David Barnea, visited Egypt in an attempt to make progress in the long-running talks on a possible truce in Gaza. The talks have reached a deadlock. This was reported by Bloomberg, according to UNN.
Details
“An Israeli delegation led by the country's intelligence chief visited Egypt in an attempt to make progress in long-running talks on a possible truce in Gaza, but returned with no sign of an immediate breakthrough,” the newspaper writes.
It is noted that the purpose of the visit was to continue negotiations on a ceasefire in the nearly 10-month war with Hamas, which could free some hostages held by the Iranian-backed militants.
“On Friday, Netanyahu's office said Israel and Hamas remain divided over what a possible ceasefire would look like. The proposed agreement, which is backed by the United States, could help reduce the reprisals that Hamas, its ally Hezbollah and their sponsor Iran have threatened for this week's assassinations of senior militants in Beirut and Tehran,” the newspaper adds.
It is emphasized that the demonstration of Israel's readiness to return to ceasefire negotiations is a bold step, as Iran and its proxies accuse it of killing the main negotiator on their side.
Israel insists that its troops must remain on the border separating the Palestinian enclave from Egypt, and also points to the need to create a mechanism to prevent the return of Hamas militants to the north of the Gaza Strip.
Another stumbling block is the number of hostages to be released by the group, which holds more than a hundred people captive.
The militants want any truce agreement to lead to a permanent ceasefire in Gaza.
Recall
Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was assassinated in the Iranian capital Tehran early Wednesday morning, an attack that sparked “threats of retaliation against Israel” and further concerns that the Gaza conflict is spiraling into a broader war in the Middle East.
