(Forelines) – Israel and Hamas signaled on Saturday they were preparing for the next round of ceasefire negotiations, as mediators pushed forward with talks to extend the fragile 42-day truce that started in January, according to Reuters.
Hamas stated there were “positive indicators” for the start of the ceasefire’s second-round talks but did not elaborate.
Israel further stated it was preparing for talks. “Israel has accepted the invitation of the mediators backed by the U.S., and will send a delegation to Doha on Monday in an effort to advance the negotiations,” according to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office report.
A delegation from Hamas is participating in ceasefire talks in Cairo with Egyptian mediators who have been helping facilitate the negotiations along with Qatari authorities. They aim to advance to the next phase of the deal, which could open the path to ending the conflict, as per Reuters report.
“We affirm our readiness to engage in the second-phase negotiations in a way that meets the demands of our people, and we call for intensified efforts to aid the Gaza Strip and lift the blockade on our suffering people,” Abdel-Latif Al-Qanoua, Hamas spokesman stated in a statement.
In a later statement following its delegation’s meeting with Hassan Mahmoud Rashad, head of Egypt’s general intelligence agency, Hamas confirmed the group’s approval of establishing a committee of what it described as “national and independent” figures to govern Gaza until elections.
According to Reuters report, Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, Egyptian President previously stated Cairo had worked in cooperation with Palestinians on forming an administrative committee of independent, professional Palestinian technocrats entrusted with the governance of Gaza following the end of the Israel-Gaza war.
His statements came in the midst of the Arab summit which adopted Egypt’s alternative reconstruction plan for Gaza, as opposed to United States President Donald Trump’s “Middle East Riviera” vision.
Even as diplomacy prolonged, an Israeli airstrike died two Palestinians in Rafah in southern Gaza on Saturday, according to medical sources report.
The Israeli military reported its aircraft targeted a drone that crossed from Israel into southern Gaza and “several suspects” who tried to collect it in what appeared to be a failed smuggling attempt.
The attack came following an Israeli drone strike died two people in Gaza on Friday. The Israeli military stated it attacked a group of suspected militants operating near its soldiers in northern Gaza and installing an explosive device in the ground.
The Gaza ceasefire deal that took effect in January urges for the remaining 59 hostages in Hamas captivity to be freed in a second stage, over which final plans would be negotiated for an end to the war.
The initial stage of the ceasefire ended last week. Israel has since enforced a total blockade on all goods entering the enclave, insisting that Hamas release the remaining hostages before initiating the negotiations to end the Gaza war.
Fighting has been paused since January 19 and Hamas has freed 33 Israeli hostages and five Thais for few 2,000 Palestinian prisoners and arrestees. Israeli officials believe fewer than half of the remaining 59 hostages are still alive.
Israel’s strike on the enclave has died more than 48,000 Palestinians, as per the Gaza health officials. It has further internally displaced nearly Gaza’s whole population and led to allegations of genocide and war crimes that rejected by Israel.
The strike started following Hamas-led Islamist militants raided southern Israel on October 7, 2023, killing approx 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages, as per the Israeli tallies.