Donald Trump (X/@WhiteHouse)
Negotiations to end the Gaza conflict are expected to ramp up in Egypt after Hamas stated it has accepted portions of US President Donald Trump’s peace plan, France 24 reported. Trump has sent his son-in-law Jared Kushner and senior West Asia envoy Steve Witkoff to Cairo to spearhead US efforts, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed that an Israeli delegation is also traveling to Egypt “to finalise technical details.
“Our goal is to contain these negotiations to a time frame of a few days,” Netanyahu said on Saturday, as per Al Jazeera. But he stressed Israel would not agree to a full withdrawal from Gaza, insisting that the military would continue holding areas under its control. He added that Hamas would eventually be disarmed either “through a diplomatic process or through a military path by us”.
Hamas announced on Friday night that it had approved the release of all captives both those alive and remains under Trump’s proposed exchange formula. The first stage of the plan involves releasing hostages in return for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners.
Trump immediately welcomed Hamas’s statement, calling it a sign the group was “ready for a lasting PEACE.” But on Saturday he warned that Hamas must act quickly, “Hamas must move quickly, or else all bets will be off.”
Despite Trump’s call for a halt to Israeli airstrikes, bombardments continued on Saturday. Gaza’s civil defence agency said at least 70 people were killed in strikes on Saturday, Al Jazeera reported.
The Egyptian Foreign Ministry confirmed that Cairo will host a wider conference of Palestinian factions to discuss Gaza’s post-war future. Hamas has said it wants a role in shaping the territory’s governance, while Trump’s plan states that neither Hamas nor other militant factions should govern Gaza.
A White House official confirmed that Trump is sending Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to Egypt to work out the details of the hostage release and prisoner exchange. Egypt’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said delegations from Hamas and Israel will also join the talks on Monday, Times of Israel reported.
With inputs from ANI
Shivam Verma is a journalist with over three years of experience in digital newsrooms. He currently works at NewsX, having previously worked for Firstpost and DNA India. A postgraduate diploma holder in Integrated Journalism from the Asian College of Journalism, Chennai, Shivam focuses on international affairs, diplomacy, defence, and politics. Beyond the newsroom, he is passionate about football—both playing and watching—and enjoys travelling to explore new places and cuisines.
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