Egypt's Foreign Minister: Significant Progress in Ceasefire Negotiations in Gaza, the Ball is in Israel's Court

SadaNews - Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdel Atti announced on Tuesday that "significant progress has been made" regarding the ceasefire negotiations in Gaza, indicating that "the ball is now in Israel's court."

This came in a statement from the Egyptian Foreign Ministry, which mentioned Abdel Atti's "intensive phone conversations about the latest developments in the ceasefire negotiations in Gaza," which included his Turkish counterpart Hakan Fidan and British counterpart David Lammy.

 

The communications also included the European Union's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas, and Hussein al-Sheikh, the Palestinian president's deputy.

According to the statement, "the calls addressed the updates on regional situations, primarily the situation in Gaza, and the persistent mediation efforts being made by Egypt in cooperation with Qatar and the United States to reach a ceasefire, facilitate humanitarian aid, and secure the release of a number of hostages and prisoners."

Abdel Atti noted, "significant progress has been made in this regard (Gaza), which was reflected in the recent consultations held in Cairo with the Palestinian delegation that focused on the proposal presented by the U.S. Special Envoy for the Middle East, Steve Weintraub, which Hamas has agreed to."

He emphasized that "the ball is now in Israel's court," pointing out the "need to pressure it to accept the proposal to help alleviate the humanitarian disaster in Gaza."

Additionally, the Egyptian Foreign Minister addressed the ongoing preparations to host the international conference for early recovery and reconstruction in Gaza (the exact date has not been specified) once a ceasefire agreement is reached.

For their part, the officials expressed, according to the statement, their "appreciation for Egypt's pivotal role in mediation in collaboration with Qatar and the United States to achieve a ceasefire, reaffirming their full support for Egypt's efforts and its role in promoting security and stability in the region."

This comes following the announcement of a new proposal by mediators regarding prisoner exchanges and ending the war in Gaza, which Hamas approved on Monday.

However, an Israeli official in Netanyahu's office stated on Tuesday that "Israel's policy is firm and has not changed, which is to release all fifty hostages according to the principles laid down by the Security Cabinet's Ministerial Committee for ending the war."

This statement implies an implicit rejection of the new proposal, despite its similarity to one previously presented by U.S. envoy Steve Weintraub, which Tel Aviv approved, consisting of releasing ten living prisoners and eighteen bodies in exchange for sixty days of ceasefire during which negotiations to end the war would take place.

Hamas has repeatedly announced its readiness to release the Israeli prisoners "in one batch," in exchange for ending the genocidal war, the withdrawal of the Israeli army from Gaza, and the release of Palestinian prisoners. However, Netanyahu evades by imposing new conditions, including disarming the Palestinian factions, and currently insists on reoccupying Gaza.