Israel decides not to send delegation to Cairo over Egyptian deal proposal

By Ahmed Asmar

ANKARA (AA) - Israel on Tuesday decided not to send its delegation to Cairo to discuss a new Egyptian proposal on a cease-fire in Gaza.

The Israeli Army Radio quoted an Israeli official, without mentioning his name, as saying that Israel will wait until the Hamas group responds to the deal proposal, after which it will decide whether to continue talks or not.

The radio, however, did not specify the nature of response it awaits from the Hamas group.

On Monday, the Israeli media reported that an Israeli delegation is scheduled to travel to Egypt to meet with Egyptian security officials on efforts for a cease-fire in Gaza.

The Israeli Ynet news website earlier on Tuesday quoted Israeli military sources as saying that the army is prepared to invade Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip in a matter of 72 hours if no deal on a cease-fire is reached.

Egypt confirmed Monday that there is a new proposal for a truce in the blockaded Gaza Strip.

"There is a proposal on the table to reach a truce in Gaza,” Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said during a meeting of the World Economic Forum in Saudi Arabia.

Rafah is the last remaining area in the enclave where Israel has not yet formally announced the entry of its troops to continue the onslaught against Palestinians.

Hamas is estimated to be holding more than 130 Israeli hostages, while Tel Aviv is holding over 9,100 Palestinians in its jails.

Hamas demands an end to Israel’s deadly offensive on the Gaza Strip and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the territory for any hostage-prisoner swap deal with Tel Aviv.

A previous deal in November 2023 saw the release of 81 Israelis and 24 foreigners in exchange for 240 Palestinians, including 71 women and 169 children.

Israel has waged a brutal offensive on Gaza since a cross-border attack by the Palestinian group Hamas on Oct. 7 last year, which Tel Aviv says killed nearly 1,200 people.

Nearly 34,500 Palestinians have since been killed, mostly women and children, and over 77,600 others injured amid mass destruction and severe shortages of necessities.

More than six 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 ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.