Cairo: Delegations from Israel, Qatar and the US have arrived in Cairo, where talks with Hamas on the second phase of the ceasefire are underway.
The talks are taking place at a time when the Israeli army has admitted its complete failure to stop the Hamas attack in 2023. Israeli officials have admitted that the army misjudged Hamas’s strength and failed to stop its attack.
According to Egyptian officials, “the relevant parties are engaged in discussions on the next stages of the ceasefire agreement, in order to ensure the implementation of the previously agreed agreements.”
The first phase of the ceasefire ends on Saturday, after which Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office has sent negotiators to Cairo.
Under the first phase, Hamas returned the bodies of four Israeli hostages, in exchange for the release of 643 Palestinian prisoners. Among them was Nayel Barghouti, the longest-serving Palestinian in Israeli prisons.
“We were in hell and today we came out of hell, today is my real birthday,” said Yahya Shareida, a freed Palestinian prisoner.
On the other hand, the Israeli organization “Hostages and Missing Families Forum” confirmed that the bodies of the returned hostages included Ohad Yahalomi, Tzahi Adan, Itzhak Elgart and Shlomo Mansour.
Hamas called for the talks to continue, saying, “We have closed the door to the enemy’s false interpretations, and now it has no choice but to join the talks.”
The talks come at a critical juncture, with the parties considering steps for the release of more prisoners and a permanent ceasefire, in order to prevent further destruction and a humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
