CAIRO: A Hamas delegation was meeting Qatari and Egyptian officials in Cairo on Monday to discuss the continuation of a fragile Gaza ceasefire.
The talks follow Israeli airstrikes on Sunday that hit dozens of Hamas positions across Gaza.
Israel said the strikes were in response to militants killing two of its soldiers, calling it “a blatant violation” of the truce.
Hamas denied any knowledge of an attack and asserted Israel had broken the ceasefire deal in place since 10 October.
The delegation, headed by Hamas official Khalil al-Hayya, would discuss “the dozens of airstrikes that killed dozens in the Gaza Strip” on Sunday, a source told AFP.
Egypt and Qatar have long played a mediating role in indirect talks between Israel and Hamas.
The discussions aim to bring about an end to the war sparked by Hamas’ unprecedented attack on Israel on 7 October 2023.
Hamas’ delegation will also meet Egyptian officials to discuss an upcoming intra-Palestinian dialogue.
The dialogue aims “to unify the Palestinian factions,“ the source told AFP.
Egypt has hosted several such meetings between Palestinian factions, notably including rival movements Hamas and Fatah.
Hamas and Fatah have been opposed for decades, particularly since Hamas violently ousted Fatah from Gaza in 2007.
“The dialogue aims to unify the Palestinian factions and discuss key issues, including the future of the Gaza Strip,“ the source said.
Discussions will also cover “the formation of the independent committee of experts that will assume management of the Strip”.
Under the US-brokered ceasefire deal, an independent transitional authority run by technocrats has been proposed to administer Gaza.
Hamas said it did not wish to govern Gaza after two years of war, though its forces have moved back into areas from which Israel has withdrawn.
Several Palestinian political officials recently raised the possibility of unaffiliated Palestinian managers running the territory.
Another informed source told AFP that “mediators’ contacts and efforts succeeded last night in restoring calm and implementing the ceasefire agreement in Gaza”. – AFP
