PARIS, May 7. /TASS/. The new round of Gaza ceasefire talks in Cairo will be Israel’s last chance to return hostages held in the Gaza Strip alive, Agence France-Presse (AFP) said, citing an unnamed Hamas official.
"This may be the last opportunity [for Israel] to return the hostages <…> alive," the Hamas official said, adding that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s decision to conduct a military operation in Rafah shows that Israel is ready to "let the hostages die."
Meanwhile, Israeli officials told AFP on condition of anonymity that "indirect talks" on the draft ceasefire agreement are expected to begin in the Egyptian capital city on Tuesday evening.
The Al-Qahera al-Ekhbariya TV channel reported earlier, citing a source, that delegatiions from Qatar, the United States, and Hamas had arrived inn Cairo for another round of talks on a ceasefire for Gaza. According to the source, the negotiators plan to finally reach a comprehensive ceasefire agreement.
According to the Al Arabiya television channel, Israeli negotiators have also arrived in Cairo.
Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh on May 6 notified the Egyptian and Qatari mediators that the movement had accepted their draft deal. According to the draft agreement, which was made public by Qatar’s Al Araby Al Jadeed newspaper, Hamas has agreed to release all Israeli hostages held in the enclave in exchange for the release of Palestinians from Israeli prisons, the establishment of a lasting truce, the withdrawal of Israeli troops from the Gaza Strip, its restoration, as well as the unimpeded delivery of humanitarian assistance to the enclave. Egypt, Qatar, the United States, and the United Nations are listed as guarantors of the deal.