Gaza cease-fire talks ongoing: Egyptian foreign minister

BEIRUT

Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty said Friday that negotiations on a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip is ongoing and his country is moving to reach a deal as soon as possible.

Abdelatty said at a news conference in Beirut following a meeting with his Lebanese counterpart, Abdullah Bou Habib, that Egypt will do whatever it takes to avoid exploding the situation in the region.

"Negotiations are ongoing, we keep presenting ideas to reach a cease-fire in Gaza, we are moving seriously with Qatar and the US to bridge the gaps (between warring parties Hamas and Israel),"added the top Egyptian diplomat.

Cease-fire talks in the Qatari capital of Doha concluded by presenting "a proposal that narrows the gaps" between the warring parties that is consistent with the principles set out by US President Joe Biden on May 31.

Biden said in May that Israel presented a three-phase deal that would end hostilities in Gaza and secure the release of hostages held in the coastal enclave. The plan includes a cease-fire, a hostage-prisoner exchange and the reconstruction of Gaza.

For months, the US, Qatar and Egypt have been trying to reach an agreement between Israel and Hamas to ensure a prisoner exchange and cease-fire, and allow humanitarian aid to enter Gaza.

But mediation efforts have been stalled due to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s refusal to meet Hamas’ demands to stop the war.

Flouting a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire, Israel has faced international condemnation amid its continued brutal offensive on Gaza since an Oct. 7 attack by Hamas.

The Israeli onslaught has since killed more than 40,000 victims, mostly women and children, and injured over 92,000, according to local health authorities.

More than 10 months into the Israeli assault, vast tracts of Gaza lie in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine.

Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which ordered it to immediately halt its military operation in the southern city of Rafah, where more than 1 million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar in Ankara