CAIRO, December 20. /TASS/. The meeting of mediators at the indirect talks between Israel and Hamas yielded positive results, giving hope for the soonest beginning of the implementation of the Gaza deal second phase, Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty said.
"The talks in Miami were good, the atmosphere was favorable. We hope that we will soon proceed to the implementation of the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire agreement," he told TASS on the sidelines of the Russia-Africa Forum ministerial meeting in Cairo.
According to the top Egyptian diplomat, he could not attend the Miami consultations but sent "high-ranking Egyptian diplomats," who discussed with their counterparts from Qatar, Turkey, and the United States discussed arrange of issue of Gaza’s future. "The agenda included the work of the Board of Peace (an administrative body in the enclave supposed to be led by US President Donald Trump - TASS), the deployment of peacekeeping forces in the enclave, the establishment of a separate Palestinian administrative body, and the beginning of Gaza’s restoration," he said.
Earlier in the day, US presidential envoy Steve Witkoff posted the meeting’s joint statement on his X page. According to the document, "the first phase has yielded progress, including expanded humanitarian assistance, the return of hostage bodies, partial force withdrawals, and a reduction in hostilities."
Consultations will continue in the coming weeks.
Israel and Hamas resumed Egypt-, Qatar-, United States-, and Turkey-mediated indirect talks on settling the situation in the Gaza Strip on October 6. On October 9, the parties to the conflict signed an agreement on the implementation of phase one of US President Donald Trump’s Gaza ceasefire plan. The ceasefire came into effect on October 10. On October 13, Hamas and other Palestinian groups released all 20 living hostages and handed over the bodies of four deceased hostages under the Gaza ceasefire deal. The Israeli side expressed resentment that Hamas returned only four out of 28 bodies of deceased hostages. Later, Hamas transferred several more bodies to Israel. By now, Hamas continues holding one more body.
According to the Axios news portal, US President Donald Trump plans to announce the beginning of the implementation of phase two of his peace plan for Gaza before December 25. Phase two envisaged the withdrawal of Israeli troops from the enclave and the deployment of an "international stabilization force," as well as the launch of the enclave administration structures.