On Saturday, May 4th, a delegation of the Palestinian armed group Hamas traveled to the Egyptian capital, Cairo, to initiate potential ceasefire and hostage release negotiations. Israeli officials stated that only if there is “positive progress” in the framework of the hostage agreement, Israel would send a delegation to Cairo for Gaza ceasefire talks.
Israeli officials informed Agence France-Presse, saying, “We are considering reaching an agreement on the possible framework of the hostage agreement.”
“It is expected that difficult and lengthy negotiations will be required to reach a true agreement,” the official said. “If we send a delegation led by a Mossad (Israeli intelligence agency) official to Cairo, it indicates positive progress has been made in the framework of the hostage agreement.”
Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh’s advisor, Taher Al-Nono, told Reuters that Hamas has started meetings with mediators from Egypt and Qatar.
However, Al-Nono reiterated Hamas’s demands, including that any agreement should involve Israel withdrawing from Gaza and ending the conflict, conditions that Israel had previously rejected.
An Israeli official stated that the core position of Israel on this matter has not changed, affirming that “Israel will not agree under any circumstances to include ending the conflict as part of the hostage release agreement.”
Although negotiators have made progress on the technical aspects of a potential agreement, two Israeli sources told CNN that it might take a week to finalize the agreement.
On Saturday, a U.S. official responded, stating that even if Hamas accepts the proposed agreement, time will be needed to finalize some details to implement the ceasefire. These discussions could also be challenging and time-consuming.
Despite the progress, U.S. officials cautiously remain optimistic about the negotiations but acknowledge the possibility of failure at the last minute, as previously experienced.
A source informed CNN that Bill Burns, the director of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, is currently in Cairo playing a crucial role in the multifaceted discussions.
Israeli officials believe that there are still 128 hostages in Gaza, with at least 34 confirmed deaths. Not all hostages are Israeli; they include 8 Thai nationals, 1 Nepalese, and individuals holding dual American and Israeli citizenship.
On Friday, May 3rd, the Israeli Defense Forces announced the discovery of the body of Elyakim Libman within Israeli territory. Libman was previously listed as a hostage in Gaza.