UPDATE WITH MORE DETAILS
By Anadolu staff
GAZA CITY, Palestine (AA) – Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh said Thursday a group delegation will visit Egypt soon to continue indirect talks with Israel for a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip.
This came in a phone conversation between Haniyeh and Egyptian intelligence chief Abbas Kamel.
According to a Hamas statement, Haniyeh told Kamel that a group delegation will return to Egypt soon to continue the ongoing talks “to reach a deal that fulfills the demands of our people and stops the aggression."
Haniyeh also made a phone call with Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani during which they agreed to continue the ongoing discussions aimed at reaching a cease-fire deal “that meets the demands of our people and halts the aggression against them,” Hamas said in a separate statement.
Indirect talks between Israel and Hamas have taken place in both Egypt and Qatar aimed at reaching a deal that includes a prisoner swap, under which Israeli captives would be released in exchange for the release of Palestinians from Israeli jails.
Tel Aviv believes that over 130 Israelis are being held in Gaza, while Israel is holding around 9,100 Palestinians in its prisons.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Monday that Israel gave Hamas a "generous" offer to release the Israeli captives, which could potentially lead to a cease-fire in Gaza.
The new offer includes Israel’s willingness to discuss the “restoration of sustainable calm” in Gaza after an initial release of hostages on humanitarian grounds, two Israeli officials told Axios news website.
Israel has waged a deadly military offensive on Gaza since an Oct. 7 cross-border attack by Hamas, which killed some 1,200 people.
Nearly 34,600 Palestinians have since been killed and over 77,700 others injured amid mass destruction and 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 (ICJ), which in January issued an interim ruling that ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.
*Writing by Ahmed Asmar and Mohammad Sio