Egypt’s president urges Israel, Hamas to reach Gaza cease-fire deal

By Ahmed Asmar

ANKARA (AA) – Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi called on Israel and Hamas on Monday to reach a cease-fire agreement in the Gaza Strip.

“I’m closely following the positive developments taking place in the current negotiations to reach a comprehensive truce in the Gaza Strip,” Sisi said in a statement on his X account.

“I call on all parties to make more efforts to reach an agreement that will lead to an end to the human tragedy that the Palestinian people are suffering from and the swap of hostages and prisoners.”

Hamas said on Monday evening that it has accepted a Qatari-Egyptian proposal for a Gaza cease-fire.

Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh conveyed his group’s approval of the proposal during phone calls with Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani and Egyptian intelligence chief Abbas Kamel, the group added in a statement.

There was no official Israeli comment on Hamas’ announcement.

Israel has pounded the Gaza Strip in retaliation for an Oct. 7 Hamas attack, which killed about 1,200 people. More than 34,700 Palestinians have since been killed in Gaza, the vast majority of whom have been women and children, and 78,100 others injured, according to Palestinian health authorities.

Nearly seven months into the Israeli war, vast swathes of Gaza lay in ruins, pushing 85% of the enclave’s population into internal displacement amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine, according to the UN.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January said it is "plausible" that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, and ordered Tel Aviv to stop such acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.