GAZA, (PIC)
The Hamas Movement has decided to send a delegation to Cairo today for talks with negotiators over a ceasefire and prisoner swap deal ending the Israeli aggression against the Gaza Strip.
In a statement on Saturday, senior Hamas official Ezzat al-Resheq said that a delegation representing the Movement would arrive in Cairo later in the day at the invitation of the Egyptian and Qatari mediators to receive direct updates on the talks aimed at achieving a deal to exchange prisoners and end the war on Gaza.
The delegation, led by Khalil al-Hayya, will listen to the results of the negotiations that took place recently in Cairo over Gaza, especially with regard to the Israeli occupation army’s withdrawal from the Philadelphi and Netzarim corridors, according to Resheq.
Resheq reiterated his Movement’s commitment to what had been agreed upon on July 2, based on the declaration that was made by US president Joe Biden and the UN Security Council resolution.
The Hamas official also highlighted his Movement’s readiness to implement what had been agreed upon at the time and called for pressuring the Israeli government to respect that and strop obstructing the efforts to reach a deal.
In a related context, president Biden asked Israeli premier Benjamin Netanyahu during their call on Wednesday to agree to pull Israeli forces back from part of the Egypt-Gaza border during the first phase of the prisoner-release and ceasefire deal so talks in this regard can move forward, three Israeli officials told Axios news website on Friday.
Netanyahu partially accepted Biden’s request and agreed to give up an Israeli troop position along one part of the Egypt-Gaza border (Philadelphi corridor), according to the Israeli officials.
One of the officials said that after the US president backed Israel’s position, Egypt agreed to deliver to Hamas updated maps regarding the Israeli military deployment in the border area.
However, the official expressed his belief that Hamas would not agree to the new maps on the deployment of Israeli forces.
