Hamas representatives and Israeli delegates start third-party negotiations in the Egyptian city on American Palestinian peace plan.

Conflict zone News Agency
Israel has been carrying out military actions in Palestinian territories for multiple weeks.

Indirect talks working toward a lasting settlement on a US peace plan to end the war in Gaza have commenced in the mediation venue of the Egyptian resort town.

Local and international officials have stated that the meetings are centered around "creating the field conditions" for a possible exchange that would see the release of all detained individuals in exchange for a quantity of incarcerated individuals.

The group stated it agrees to the peace plan proposals to some extent, but has not responded to several crucial requirements - including its weapons surrender and governance position in Gaza.

Israel's prime minister said on Saturday that he anticipated declaring the release of detained individuals "soon"

Conflict Timeline

The discussions, which will see Egyptian and Qatari officials holding shuttle meetings with delegations from both Israel and Hamas in isolation, take place on the eve of the 24-month point of the armed assault on southern Israel on October 7th, in which nearly 1,200 people were fatally wounded and 251 people were taken hostage.

The Israeli military launched a campaign in Gaza in response. Since then, 67,160 have been killed by armed interventions in Gaza, according to the region's medical administration.

Peace Plan Details

The detailed initiative, which has been approved by the Trump administration and the Netanyahu government, outlines an prompt cessation to combat and the release of 48 hostages, only 20 individuals are thought to be surviving, in return for hundreds of detained Gazans.

The plan stipulates that once both sides agree to the proposal "humanitarian support will be quickly dispatched into the Palestinian territory"

It also declares that Hamas would have no participation in governing Gaza, and it allows for an future Palestinian sovereignty.

Current Situation

On Friday, Hamas responded to the initiative in a declaration, in which the group agreed "to release all detainees, both alive and killed, in accordance with the swap arrangement contained in the US initiative" - if the required situation for the exchanges are met.

It did not specifically mention or accept the detailed initiative but said it "renews its agreement to hand over the governance of the Palestinian territory to a governing council of professionals, founded on Palestinian national consensus and regional endorsement"

The announcement omitted reference of one of the crucial requirements of the initiative – that Hamas accept its military demobilization and to ceasing political participation in the administration of Gaza.

International Response

Many Palestinians described the organization's answer to the ceasefire proposal as surprising, after an extended period of indications that the faction was preparing to reject or at least heavily condition its endorsement of the American initiative.

Conversely, Hamas omitted its traditional "red lines" in the formal declaration, a decision many interpret as a sign of outside forces.

Global and local leaders have welcomed the initiative. The Palestinian Authority, which governs parts of the disputed regions, has described the US president's efforts as "genuine and committed"

Iran - which has been one of Hamas's main sponsors for an extended period - has also now signalled its support for the American initiative.

Current Situation

Military strikes persisted in several parts of the Gaza Strip on Monday prior to the negotiations starting.

Defense personnel is carrying out an military operation in the city, which it has stated is intended to obtaining the release of the remaining hostages.

Mahmoud Basal, speaking for Gaza's Hamas-run civil defence, reported that "assistance vehicles have been allowed into the urban center since the military operations started recently"

"There are still bodies we are unable to recover from areas under defense force authority" he said.

Hundreds of thousands of the metropolitan area have been required to leave after the defense forces mandated relocations to a established protection region in the south, but hundreds of thousands more are thought to have stayed.

Israel's defence minister has cautioned that those who persist during the combat campaign would be "militants and their backers"

In the previous day, 21 Palestinians have been lost their lives in Gaza and a another 96 injured, the regional health administration said in its most recent report.

Foreign correspondents have been banned by Israeli authorities from accessing the Palestinian territory without supervision since the commencement of the war, making authenticating statements from all parties problematic.

Cynthia Horton
Cynthia Horton

A passionate local writer and event enthusiast, sharing her love for Messina's vibrant cultural scene.