War, latest news. Media, Hamas ok to release first hostages without ending the war. Gantz: still no response, we need to wait

16:06

Israel: Hamas discusses truce offer in Gaza, talks regarding hostage exchange

A Hamas delegation discusses with mediators in Cairo an offer of truce in the war between the Palestinian Islamic movement and Israel in Gaza, as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu threatens to launch an assault on Rafah.

After nearly seven months of war, the truce offer on the table includes a 40-day pause in the Israeli offensive in Gaza accompanied by the release of Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the release of hostages kidnapped during the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel , which started the war.

The Hamas delegation led by Khalil al-Hayya, number two of the Gaza political branch, has arrived in Egypt, an official said. A first round of negotiations should begin in the early followingnoon with “the presence of delegations from Qatar, Egypt and the United States”, the mediating countries, added the source on condition of anonymity, underlining that several points still remain to be resolved

According to the American website Axios, the head of the CIA, William Burns, is in the Egyptian capital. In Jerusalem, an Israeli official said discussions in Cairo focused on the “picture” of a possible hostage exchange. Israel will send a delegation only if there is progress on this issue, adding that it expects “difficult negotiations” to reach a concrete agreement.