An Israeli delegation will visit Cairo “in the coming days” to discuss a possible truce agreement with the Islamic terrorist group Hamas in Gaza and an exchange of Israeli hostages for Palestinian terrorists, an Egyptian security source said on Wednesday.
"He will probably arrive early next week," said the source familiar with the talks, adding that the Israeli delegation will include "senior military intelligence officials."
“His visit is a positive sign and a first step towards reaching an understanding after a year has passed since the first truce agreement,” he stressed, referring to the only pause in the conflict, achieved in November 2023, which lasted a week.
The source did not rule out that "in the coming days there will be political progress towards reaching an agreement."
Egypt, a key mediator along with the United States and Qatar in talks on a Gaza truce, has been hosting a series of meetings for several days between Palestinian groups, the Islamic terrorist organization Hamas and the nationalist movement Fatah, to agree on the creation of a committee to administer Gaza in the post-war period.
The aim is to reach an understanding among the Palestinian factions themselves that would pave the way for an agreement acceptable to Israel that would include the reopening of the Rafah land crossing.
The crossing, which connects Gaza and Egypt and through which most humanitarian aid reaches Gazans, has been closed since last May, when the Israel Defense Forces took control of the south of the enclave and the Gazan side of the Rafah crossing.
An Egyptian security source said on Sunday that Cairo had handed Hamas and Fatah a document proposing a 60-day truce with Israel and an exchange of terrorist prisoners and hostages between the two sides, as well as the reopening of the crossing starting this month.
Mediators have been trying for a year to reach a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.
The Palestinian terrorist group insists on three main conditions for the signing of an agreement: gradual withdrawal of troops from the enclave, the return of displaced people to their homes and increased entry of humanitarian aid.
For its part, the Israeli government - especially its more conservative sector - has shown in recent months its refusal to accept most of these demands, but above all the total withdrawal of its troops from the Strip.
However, the arrival of the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Lebanon, which came into force on Wednesday, November 27, has opened new hope for resuming negotiations in Gaza after months of blockade.
Agencies contributed to this Aurora article