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Hamas heads to Cairo
Hamas political leader and chief negotiator Khalil al-Hayya is travelling to Cairo for talks with Egyptian officials ahead of a planned Middle East visit by US President Donald Trump’s envoy Jared Kushner.
“Khalil al-Hayya is expected to meet Egyptian intelligence chief Hassan Rashad on Sunday morning”
Al Jazeera reports that al-Hayya is expected to meet Egyptian intelligence chief Hassan Rashad on Sunday morning, with Hamas sources telling AFP and Anadolu that the talks come as mediators push for a roadmap tied to Trump’s peace plan.
The Haaretz report places the Cairo visit alongside preparations for Kushner’s expected arrival in Israel later this week, naming Board of Peace high representative Nickolay Mladenov and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair as part of the broader effort to save a Gaza truce.
In parallel, Israeli attacks continued in Gaza, with Al Jazeera citing the territory’s Ministry of Health saying that on Saturday Israeli fire killed two Palestinians and wounded 14 others after air strikes, artillery shelling and demolitions in different parts of the strip.
Al Jazeera also says Netanyahu formally rejected the Board of Peace plan last Sunday, declaring that Israeli forces “will not carry out any withdrawal until Hamas is genuinely disarmed,” while Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said troops would remain in occupied “security zones” in Lebanon and Syria.
Roadmap dispute and talks
The Jerusalem Post says Kushner, former British prime minister Tony Blair, and Gazan Board of Peace Director-General Nikolay Mladenov met with a Hamas delegation in Cairo on Sunday to discuss implementing the Board of Peace’s 15-point roadmap for the Gaza Strip.
A source familiar with the matter told The Jerusalem Post that the meeting aimed to translate the steps in Mladenov’s roadmap into “concrete, verifiable actions” aimed at maintaining the ceasefire and removing Hamas from power in Gaza.
The Haaretz report frames the Cairo visit as occurring as Kushner is expected to arrive in Israel later this week, with Mladenov and Blair also expected to travel alongside him.
In the same dispute over implementation, The Jerusalem Post quotes Netanyahu saying, “Israel rejects the Board of Peace’s 15-point document on Gaza,” and adds that “The IDF will not carry out any withdrawal until Hamas is genuinely disarmed.”
Al Jazeera adds that Hamas political bureau member Basem Naim told AFP on Friday, “We continue to await pressure from the mediators and the US side on Netanyahu and his government to compel him to abide by the roadmap,” as Israeli fire and shelling continued during the diplomatic push.
What’s at stake next
Multiple outlets tie the Cairo talks to the next phase of a Gaza plan that centers on disarmament of Hamas and withdrawal of Israeli forces, with Al Jazeera saying the trip follows Netanyahu’s dismissal of a 15-point plan under which Hamas had agreed to hand its weapons to a new Palestinian governing committee.
“transfer of all governing responsibilities in the strip to the technocratic National Committee for the Administration of Gaza (NCAG)”
The Jerusalem Post says the meeting also covered the transfer of governing responsibilities in the strip to the technocratic National Committee for the Administration of Gaza (NCAG) and deployment of the International Stabilization Force (ISF), alongside decommissioning Hamas weapons and terror infrastructure and IDF withdrawal.
Al Jazeera reports that more than 1,250 Palestinians in Gaza have been killed by Israeli fire since the ceasefire took effect in October last year, and that the overall death toll since October 2023 exceeds 73,300, citing Palestinian official sources.
The Jerusalem Post adds that the US and Hamas delegations discussed reconstruction and humanitarian relief efforts in Gaza, while also stating that there can be no ambiguity that Hamas must relinquish governing authority and all weapons and military infrastructure.
In parallel, Al Jazeera says Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz declared there will be a continued Israeli military presence across Lebanon and Syria, while Al Jazeera reports that Israeli attacks have continued in Gaza, including the Saturday strike that killed two Palestinians and wounded 14 others.
