Hamas meets with Egyptian officials in renewed push for Gaza ceasefire

Egyptian intelligence officials met with a Hamas delegation in Cairo on Sunday to discuss a ceasefire in Gaza, the re-opening of the Rafah border crossing and measures to facilitate increased humanitarian aid into the strip, according to the AFP.

The meeting comes less than a week after the U.S. announced it would intensify efforts to negotiate a ceasefire in collaboration with Qatar, Egypt and Turkey. It also follows a truce reached between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon. 

Reuters reports that Israel’s Foreign Minister expressed optimism about reaching a potential deal to release additional Israeli hostages. However, he underscored that any lasting ceasefire would depend on the complete dismantling of Hamas' governance capabilities in Gaza and its capacity to threaten Israel. Experts note there remains no clear roadmap defining the conditions under which Israel would consider its security assured.

Meanwhile, AFP also reported that delegations from Fatah met with Egyptian officials to deliberate on the future governance of Gaza post-conflict.

“There are indeed two delegations from the Fatah and Hamas movements in Cairo consulting and deliberating to quickly reach a mutual understanding regarding the management of daily affairs in the Gaza Strip under the full control of the Palestinian Authority,” Egypt’s Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty stated during a news conference in Cairo.