Top Israeli security officials travel to Egypt to discuss 2nd phase of Gaza ceasefire deal

By Zein Khalil

JERUSALEM (AA) – Top Israeli security officials travelled to Cairo to discuss arrangements of the second phase of a Gaza ceasefire agreement with Egyptian officials, Israeli media said on Wednesday.

Mossad chief David Barnea, and Ronen Bar, the head of Israel’s Shin Bet domestic security service, chose to go to Cairo to discuss the second phase of the deal, instead of waiting for day 16 of the first phase, Israeli Channel 12 reported.

Key topics include the terms for releasing Palestinian prisoners and the numbers in exchange for Israeli captives, the broadcaster said.

The negotiations will also address long-term governance alternatives for Gaza, according to the channel.

Separately, Israel Hayom daily reported Wednesday that eight Palestinian prisoners with Israeli citizenship, all serving life sentences, will be released under the first phase of the Gaza ceasefire deal.

These individuals were arrested between 2001 and 2003 during the Second Intifada, with five identified as Hamas members and the rest are members of Fatah movement.

According to the newspaper, some 71 Palestinians holding Israeli citizenship or residency will be released as part of the first phase.

On Sunday, Israel released 90 Palestinian detainees, including women and children, in exchange for three Israeli captives freed by Hamas.

Currently, over 10,400 Palestinian prisoners are held in Israeli jails, while Hamas detains approximately 96 Israelis in Gaza.

Under the first six-week phase of the ceasefire, Hamas is expected to release 33 Israeli captives in return for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.

The ceasefire deal took effect on Jan. 19, suspending Israel’s genocidal war that has killed nearly 47,200 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and injured more than 111,160 since Oct. 7, 2023.

The three-phase ceasefire agreement includes a prisoner exchange and sustained calm, aiming for a permanent truce and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza.

The Israeli onslaught has left more than 11,000 people missing, with widespread destruction and a humanitarian crisis that has claimed the lives of many elderly people and children in one of the worst global humanitarian disasters ever.

The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants in November last year for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.

*Writing by Mohammad Sio