Delegations from the US, Israel, Hamas and Middle Eastern countries are set to meet in Egypt on Monday for highly anticipated talks that could pave the way for a cease-fire in Gaza and the release of hostages. President Trump said in a post on Truth Social on Sunday afternoon that the talks were “proceeding rapidly” in the lead-up to Monday’s meeting. “I am told that the first phase should be completed this week, and I am asking everyone to move fast,” he said.
‘Well, not yet’: Rubio on negotiations indication end of Gaza war
Asked on NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday whether the negotiations indicate the end of the war in Gaza, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said, “Well, not yet. There’s some work that remains to be done.” Rubio said the path to bringing the conflict to a close would come in two phases: the first includes the coming meetings and working out logistics of the hostage release, Wall Street Journal reported. “But that work is happening even as I speak to you this very moment,” he said. The second, harder part, he added, is working out what happens inside Gaza after Israel withdraws to the agreed-upon lines. The plan includes creating a Palestinian technocratic leadership in Gaza. “You can’t set up a government structure in Gaza that’s not Hamas in three days,” he said. “I mean, it takes some time.” Trump, who has pressured all sides to come to the table, appeared optimistic about the initial talks. “We’ll see how it turns out,” he said Sunday. “But I’m hearing it’s going very well.” The president pushed on Saturday for a quick resolution. “Let’s get this done, FAST,” he wrote on Truth Social. Trump is sending his top envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to help seal the deal. Senior delegations from Israel, Hamas, Qatar, Turkey and Egypt will also be taking part in the talks.
What to be expected
The parties meeting in Cairo will try to come to agreements over crucial points, including Israeli military withdrawal lines in Gaza and the names of high-profilePalestinian prisoners to be released in exchange for the remaining 48 hostages, including as many as 20 that Israel believes to be alive. Even if those talks succeed, however, they would not immediately end the nearly two-year-old conflict, US officials told WSJ.
The peace talks also come with a twist
The leader of the Hamas delegation is a man Israel tried to kill in a missile attack three weeks ago. Khalil al-Hayya this weekend made his first public appearance since being wounded in Israel’s failed strike on a gathering of Hamas negotiators as they met to discuss efforts to end the war in the Qatari capital of Doha. The strike caused a diplomatic uproar that ultimately set the stage for a deal to end the war. The attack underscored the risk of continuing the war to Arab countries and gave Trump the leverage he needed to put pressure on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to commit to ending the war. Al-Hayya appeared on television Saturday, almost a month after the Israeli strike that attempted to kill him and successfully killed his son. Al-Hayya said the deaths of his son and all the Palestinians in Gaza who have been killed in the war were “both a harsh trial and a badge of honour.” Insisting he was unbowed, he said the deaths would be “the fuel of victory, the path to Jerusalem and a stain that will forever haunt the occupation.” Al-Hayya’s defiance underscores the challenges that could complicate talks despite optimistic statements from Trump.
Hamas accepts Trump’s Gaza peace plan but with conditions
Hamas on Friday said it had broadly accepted Trump’s 20-point peace plan to end the war and rebuild Gaza, but the response came with caveats. The group is divided internally over accepting the terms for its disarmament and the conditions under which it would free hostages. Al-Hayya and other senior political officials based outside of Gaza favour accepting the proposal despite significant reservations, Arab mediators told WSJ. But they have limited sway over the group’s armed wing, which remains in the enclave. Israel’s Netanyahu said Saturday that he hopes a hostages-for-prisoners exchange agreement can be reached this week. “Our intention, and the intention of our American friends, is to limit these negotiations to a few days,” Netanyahu said. But negotiations could realistically take longer, Arab mediators and U.S. officials cautioned. While there is no official deadline for the talks, the goal is to get the hostages and prisoner swap done as soon as possible, a senior U.S. official said.
