Cairo (agencies)
The Israeli war government gave the green light to resume negotiations aimed at liberating hostages held in Gaza, while two Egyptian security sources announced yesterday that Cairo remains committed to mediating truce talks in the Strip.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said in a statement: “The war government issued instructions to the negotiating team to continue negotiations to return the hostages.” This came after a meeting of the Israeli war cabinet late yesterday evening.
The negotiations mediated by the United States, Egypt and Qatar between Israel and the Palestinian factions stopped at the beginning of this May, and revolve around a truce in the war that has been ongoing for more than 7 months, including the release of hostages held in Gaza and Palestinian detainees in Israeli prisons.
The negotiations faltered due to an escalation in Israeli military operations in the city of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip and the factions’ adherence to a permanent ceasefire. The Israeli government is under great pressure from within to release the 252 hostages, 124 of whom are still detained today, and 37 of whom have died, according to the Israeli army.
These developments come after Norway, Ireland and Spain announced their official recognition of the State of Palestine as of May 28.
In addition, two Egyptian security sources announced yesterday that Egypt is still committed to helping negotiate a ceasefire agreement and the release of hostages held in the Gaza Strip, and they added that Cairo is in contact with Israel to set a date for a new round of talks. During intermittent talks that have been ongoing for months, Egypt, Qatar and the United States have been trying to reach an interim agreement between Israel and the Palestinian factions that would lead to a truce in Gaza and the gradual release of the Israeli hostages held in the Strip.
The two sources said that the Egyptian mediators received phone calls from Israeli security officials over the past two days, in which they thanked Cairo for its role, while the Egyptians expressed during the calls their desire to complete negotiations on Gaza, and agreed to set a date for the talks.
Meanwhile, Palestinian Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Muhammad Mustafa discussed yesterday with Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albarez efforts to stop the Israeli war on the Gaza Strip.
This came during a phone call that Mustafa made with Manuel Albarez, according to a statement issued by the Palestinian Prime Minister’s Office.
The statement indicated that Mustafa discussed pushing efforts to stop the Israeli aggression against the Palestinian people, reaching a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, strengthening relief efforts and bringing aid through the land crossings into the Strip, and dissuading Israel from a massive ground invasion into Rafah.
Mustafa appreciated Spain’s recognition of the State of Palestine, stressing the importance of strengthening bilateral relations between the two countries in light of this recognition.
Mustafa also discussed with Albaris the importance of working within the European Union to take practical steps to strengthen the partnership between the State of Palestine and the European Union, calling on the European Union to formulate a clear and frank position regarding Israel’s plans to target the Palestinian people and their leadership, and the incitement it practices, whether from within the Israeli government or from outside it.
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