Today, Gaza's Armistice Negotiations Continue In Cairo

The KAIRO - Negotiations to secure a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, after about half a year of fighting between the Israeli army and the Palestinian resistance group, will continue in Cairo on Sunday 7 April, according to Egyptian media reports. The news was reported by private broadcaster Al-Qahera News on Saturday, citing an unnamed "high-level source of Egypt", while no official statement was issued by Egyptian authorities at 13.45 local time. The source added that US CIA Director Bill Burns, Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Qatari Mohammed bin Abdulrahman, as well as the Israeli delegation also participated in the negotiations. A senior delegation of Gaza-based Hamas groups was also expected to arrive in Cairo on Sunday at the Egyptian invitation to discuss developments related to the ceasefire in Gaza, according to the report. On Friday, US government officials said that President Joe Biden had recently sent two special letters to Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Emir Qatar Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani related to the acceleration of ceasefire negotiations, according to US media. The official said that Biden through his letter asked Egypt and Qatari to "enforce Hamas in order to speed up ceasefire negotiations." There has been no immediate comment from Cairo or Doha related to the issue. Israel launched a deadly military attack on the Gaza Strip since the cross-bordered attacks by the Palestinian Hamas group in early October, killing less than 1,200 people. More than 33,100 Palestinians have since then died, and more than 75,800 others have been injured amid the mass destruction and the scar of basic necessities. Israel has also imposed a crippling blockade in the Gaza Strip, causing its residents, in particular, to be on the verge of starvation.

The Israeli war has forced 85 percent of Gaza's population into refugees amid the acute scarcity of food, clean water, and medicines, while 60 percent of the bag's regional infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the United Nations. Israel is accused of committing genocide at the International Court, which last week asked it to make more efforts to prevent hunger in Gaza.