Delegations from Israel, Hamas, and the United States are expected to meet in Egypt on Monday for a new round of ceasefire negotiations aimed at ending the nearly two-year-long Gaza war.
The talks come amid mounting international pressure and a push by US President Donald Trump, who urged both sides to “move fast” toward a deal.
According to sources, the discussions, hosted in the Egyptian resort city of Sharm El-Sheikh, will focus on finalizing a temporary truce, a large-scale hostage-prisoner exchange, and the first phase of Trump’s proposed peace plan.
Hamas’s top negotiator, Khalil al-Hayya, arrived in Cairo earlier Monday for preliminary meetings with mediators from Egypt and Qatar.
“The objective is to fix a date for a temporary ceasefire and begin the process of exchanging hostages for Palestinian detainees,” a senior Hamas official told newsmen.
The group is expected to release 47 hostages still held in Gaza in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners currently detained by Israel.
Posting on Truth Social Sunday, Trump said he had held “positive discussions with Hamas” and regional partners, writing, “I am told the first phase should be completed this week, and I am asking everyone to MOVE FAST.”
Foreign ministers from several Arab nations have described the negotiations as a “real opportunity” to secure a lasting ceasefire.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed cautious optimism, saying he hoped the talks would lead to the release of hostages “within days.”
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio urged restraint ahead of the talks, calling on Israel to temporarily halt strikes on Gaza.
“You can’t negotiate the release of hostages amid ongoing airstrikes,” Rubio told CBS on Sunday.
Trump has dispatched Jared Kushner and Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff to Egypt to oversee US participation in the process.
A Palestinian official close to Hamas said the group demanded a complete halt to Israeli air operations, drone surveillance, and ground incursions across Gaza as a condition for its cooperation. In return, Hamas pledged to suspend its military actions.
Israel’s military chief, Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir, warned that if negotiations fail, Israel would “resume combat operations in full force.”
Despite the talks, airstrikes continued overnight in Gaza City and Khan Yunis, with 20 Palestinians reportedly killed Sunday, according to Gaza’s civil defence agency.
Under Trump’s proposed roadmap, endorsed by Israel, hostilities would pause within 72 hours, hostages would be released, and Israel would begin a gradual withdrawal from Gaza.
The plan also calls for Hamas’s disarmament and the creation of a technocratic transitional authority, to be supervised by a post-war administrative council led by Trump himself.
Hamas has rejected parts of the proposal, insisting it must play a role in Gaza’s future governance, a demand both Washington and Tel Aviv oppose.
“We hope Trump will pressure Netanyahu to stop the war,” said Ahmad Barbakh, a resident of Al-Mawasi.
“People here just want the prisoner exchange to happen quickly so Israel has no reason to continue fighting.”
The conflict, which began with Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack that killed 1,219 people in Israel, has left a devastating toll.
Israel’s subsequent offensive has killed more than 67,000 Palestinians, according to figures from Gaza’s health ministry, which the UN deems credible.
Israel, Hamas set for ceasefire talks in Egypt as Trump pushes for swift deal