Cairo [Egypt], October 5 : Talks to end the war in Gaza are set to intensify in Egypt after Hamas announced it had accepted parts of US President Donald Trump's peace plan, according to a report by France 24.
Trump has dispatched his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, and top West Asia negotiator Steve Witkoff to Cairo to lead US efforts, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed that a delegation from Israel is also heading to Egypt "to finalise technical details."
"Our goal is to contain these negotiations to a time frame of a few days," Netanyahu said on Saturday, as per Al Jazeera. But he stressed Israel would not agree to a full withdrawal from Gaza, insisting that the military would continue holding areas under its control. He added that Hamas would eventually be disarmed either "through a diplomatic process or through a military path by us".
Hamas announced on Friday night that it had approved the release of all captives both those alive and remains under Trump's proposed exchange formula. The first stage of the plan involves releasing hostages in return for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners.
Trump immediately welcomed Hamas's statement, calling it a sign the group was "ready for a lasting PEACE." But on Saturday he warned that Hamas must act quickly, "Hamas must move quickly, or else all bets will be off."
Despite Trump's call for a halt to Israeli airstrikes, bombardments continued on Saturday. Gaza's civil defence agency said at least 70 people were killed in strikes on Saturday, Al Jazeera reported.
The Egyptian Foreign Ministry confirmed that Cairo will host a wider conference of Palestinian factions to discuss Gaza's post-war future. Hamas has said it wants a role in shaping the territory's governance, while Trump's plan states that neither Hamas nor other militant factions should govern Gaza.
A White House official confirmed that Trump is sending Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to Egypt to work out the details of the hostage release and prisoner exchange. Egypt's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said delegations from Hamas and Israel will also join the talks on Monday, Times of Israel reported.
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