Israeli and Hamas negotiators are due in Cairo on Sunday ahead of the negotiations focused on ending nearly two years of war in Gaza. The Israeli side is hoping that the hostages held by Hamas will be released in a matter of days.
The move was announced after the Egyptian negotiators received positive signs from Hamas for US President Donald Trump’s roadmap for freeing the captives and administering post-war Gaza.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is under immense pressure from both the domestic and international community, said on Saturday that he had ordered negotiators to Egypt "to finalise the technical details". Egypt also confirmed that it was hosting a delegation of Hamas on Sunday.
Meanwhile, Trump has sent two envoys to Egypt ahead of the much-anticipated talks, including his son-in-law Jared Kushner and his Middle East Envoy Steve Witkoff.
Earlier, Trump said he was not going to tolerate any delay from Hamas over the peace deal, urging the group to quickly move towards reaching a ceasefire "or else all bets will be off".
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Netanyahu has said, "Military and diplomatic pressure" compelled Hamas to agree to release the captives. "I hope that in the coming days we will be able to bring back all our hostages... during the Sukkot holidays," Netanyahu said, referring to the Jewish festival that begins on Monday and runs for one week.
Further, Trump’s roadmap highlights that Hamas and its factions must not have any role in the governance of Gaza.
So far, Israel’s war on Gaza has killed more than 67,074 Palestinians while injuring more than 160,000, with thousands more buried under the rubble in Gaza, according to health ministry figures in the Hamas-run territory that the United Nations considers reliable.
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