Egypt’s Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty held a phone call with the US Special Envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, during which he assured of Egypt’s desire to maintain constructive relations with US President Donald Trump and his administration regarding the Arab plan for early recovery and reconstruction in Gaza.
Witkoff confirmed his familiarity with the Arab plan and stated that it features ‘attractive’ aspects while showcasing good intentions, and added that he is open to hearing more details about it.
The US State Department previously said that the Egyptian plan regarding Gaza “does not meet the aspirations” of President Donald Trump, who suggested that America should take over Gaza and settle its residents abroad.
The Egyptian Foreign Minister stressed during his call with the American envoy Witkoff the need to continue joint efforts to implement all stages of the ceasefire agreement in Gaza from all parties, and for Israel to allow humanitarian aid to enter Gaza Strip.
Talks with Hamas press on
Egypt’s State Information Service (SIS) announced the arrival of a delegation from the Hamas movement to Cairo on Friday, to discuss the procedures for implementing the ceasefire agreement in Gaza and push negotiations to enter the second phase of the agreement.
According to the SIS, Egypt is tirelessly continuing its cooperation with Qatar and the US in order to provide the necessary guarantees to move to the second phase of the ceasefire agreement in Gaza.
American media reports stated that the US proposed to Hamas in their talks on Wednesday a two-month truce in exchange for the release of all hostages, which the movement rejected.
The Washington Post reported on Friday that the US had proposed to Hamas the release of a number of living hostages, including American citizen Edan Alexander, in exchange for extending the ceasefire in Gaza Strip for two months, and resuming humanitarian aid.
Hamas reiterated that the ultimate goal of the negotiations should be a permanent end to the war and a complete withdrawal of the occupation from Gaza.
