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Palestinian Factions Hold Indirect Talks in Cairo on Second Phase of Gaza Ceasefire

A general view shows destruction in the Bureij camp in the central Gaza Strip on January 9, 2026 following Israeli attacks. Gaza's civil defense agency said Israeli attacks in the Palestinian territory killed at least 13 people, including five children, despite a ceasefire that has largely halted the fighting. (AFP)
A general view shows destruction in the Bureij camp in the central Gaza Strip on January 9, 2026 following Israeli attacks. Gaza's civil defense agency said Israeli attacks in the Palestinian territory killed at least 13 people, including five children, despite a ceasefire that has largely halted the fighting. (AFP)
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Palestinian Factions Hold Indirect Talks in Cairo on Second Phase of Gaza Ceasefire

A general view shows destruction in the Bureij camp in the central Gaza Strip on January 9, 2026 following Israeli attacks. Gaza's civil defense agency said Israeli attacks in the Palestinian territory killed at least 13 people, including five children, despite a ceasefire that has largely halted the fighting. (AFP)
A general view shows destruction in the Bureij camp in the central Gaza Strip on January 9, 2026 following Israeli attacks. Gaza's civil defense agency said Israeli attacks in the Palestinian territory killed at least 13 people, including five children, despite a ceasefire that has largely halted the fighting. (AFP)

A Palestinian source from the Fatah movement told Asharq Al-Awsat on Tuesday that “indirect” meetings among Palestinian factions have begun in Cairo to discuss advancing the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire agreement, particularly the formation of the committee to run the enclave, ahead of a broader meeting scheduled for Wednesday.

The second phase of the ceasefire, which came into force on Oct. 10, includes key provisions such as the disarmament of Hamas, the formation of a Board of Peace to oversee the peace process in the territory, the establishment of a technocratic committee to run Gaza’s affairs, and the deployment of an international stabilization force.

The Palestinian source stated that eight Palestinian factions are currently in Cairo, including Fatah and Hamas, to explore ways to advance the stalled second phase.

Fatah may skip the factions’ meeting

The source said discussions include the formation of the technocratic committee, the Palestinian police force to be deployed in the enclave, and related structures, noting that differences remain and that Fatah refuses to meet directly with Hamas.

A second informed Fatah source told Asharq Al-Awsat that the movement may not take part in Wednesday’s planned factions’ meeting.

A Palestinian source stated on Monday that consultations in Cairo were expected to finalize the administration committee and present factions with proposed names, particularly following recent developments involving changes to some nominees in response to Israeli objections.

On Tuesday, another informed Palestinian source stated that an agreement had been reached on the names of most members of the technocratic committee.

In televised remarks late on Sunday, Hamas politburo member Mohammed Nazzal said a delegation from the movement would discuss follow-up on the implementation of the ceasefire agreement amid “major difficulties hindering its application and continued Israeli violations.”

Mediators’ contacts

The Gaza administration committee has moved to the forefront of ceasefire mediation efforts, amid anticipation of decisive US decisions on announcing the Board of Peace and the technocratic committee, as well as Wednesday’s factions’ meeting in Cairo.

Those intensive contacts by mediators “require real US pressure and Palestinian consensus to translate them into momentum for the second phase and to overcome Israeli obstacles,” an Egyptian expert told Asharq Al-Awsat.

Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesman Majed Al Ansari said at a press conference on Tuesday that Doha is working with mediators to accelerate progress toward the second phase of the ceasefire, accusing Israel of obstructing the deal.

“Israel must answer one question: why is the Gaza agreement delayed?” Al Ansari said, adding that “the complexities on the table today require moving forward to the second phase of the agreement, and our contacts are continuous and daily to push the deal ahead.”

Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani and Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty stressed during a phone call the importance of announcing the formation of the temporary Palestinian technocratic committee, in parallel with establishing the international stabilization force, ensuring the flow of humanitarian aid, and creating conditions for early recovery and reconstruction, said a statement by Egypt’s Foreign Ministry on Tuesday.

Abdelatty and Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan also agreed during a phone call on Tuesday on “the need to intensify regional and international efforts to ensure the consolidation of the ceasefire and to move forward with the transition to the second phase of the US president’s plan.”

In a separate call with Palestinian Vice President Hussein al-Sheikh, Abdelatty reaffirmed Egypt’s support for deploying the international stabilization force and technocratic committee, which would help create the conditions necessary for restoring the Palestinian Authority’s role.

Abdelatty also spoke by phone with German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul, who is close to Israel, to discuss Gaza.

Mukhtar Ghobashi, Secretary General of the Al-Farabi Center for Strategic Studies, said mediators’ contacts must be followed by genuine and serious US pressure to announce second-phase decisions, whether on forming the administration committee or the Board of Peace.

Ghobashi said Cairo is keen to push the second phase forward, as reflected in the intensive contacts, but that progress hinges on US pressure, Palestinian consensus, and imminent US decisions this week to end the tragedy in the enclave, for which Israel bears full responsibility.

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Arab World

Oman Stresses Importance of Resumption of Negotiations between US and Iran 

Oman’s Sultan Haitham bin Tarik meets with Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council Ali Larijani in Muscat on Tuesday. (ONA)
Oman’s Sultan Haitham bin Tarik meets with Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council Ali Larijani in Muscat on Tuesday. (ONA)
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Oman Stresses Importance of Resumption of Negotiations between US and Iran 

Oman’s Sultan Haitham bin Tarik meets with Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council Ali Larijani in Muscat on Tuesday. (ONA)
Oman’s Sultan Haitham bin Tarik meets with Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council Ali Larijani in Muscat on Tuesday. (ONA)

Oman stressed on Tuesday the importance of the resumption of dialogue and negotiations between the United States and Iran in wake of talks hosted in Muscat on Friday between the two sides. Tehran said last week’s indirect talks allowed it to assess how serious Washington was about resuming that path.

Oman’s Sultan Haitham bin Tarik received in Muscat on Tuesday Ali Larijani, a former Iranian parliament speaker who now serves as the secretary to the country's Supreme National Security Council, for talks on the latest developments of the Iranian-American negotiations, reported the Sultanate’s official news agency ONA.

The nearly three-hour meeting also addressed paths toward achieving a balanced and equitable agreement for all parties.

It underscored the critical importance of resuming dialogue and returning to the negotiating table to bridge divides and resolve outstanding differences through peaceful means. Such efforts are fundamental to promoting and sustaining peace and security both in the region and the world at large, said ONA.

Sultan Haitham later sent a cable of greetings to Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian on his country's National Day.

He expressed his sincere wishes for Iran to achieve further accomplishments. He hoped relations of cooperation and partnership would grow and expand across various sectors in a manner that serves the interests of both countries.

Oman’s Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi later received Larijani for a “productive” meeting on recent developments, especially the Iran-US talks, he wrote on X.

“Regional peace and security is our priority, and we urge restraint and wise compromise,” he stressed.

Larijani's entourage shared photos of him meeting with the FM, the chief intermediary in the US-Iran talks, with what appeared to be a letter sheathed in plastic and sitting alongside the Omani diplomat.

Iranian media had said Larijani would deliver an important message. However, Iranian state television hours after that meeting described Albusaidi as having “handed over a letter” to Larijani. It did not elaborate from where the letter came.

Iran talks a global focus

Iran and the US held new nuclear talks last week in Oman. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, speaking Sunday to diplomats at a summit in Tehran, signaled that Iran would stick to its position that it must be able to enrich uranium — a major point of contention with US President Donald Trump. Israel’s war on Iran in June disrupted earlier rounds of nuclear talks between Washington and Tehran.

“The Muscat meeting, which was not a long one, it was a half-day meeting. For us it was a way to measure the seriousness of the other side, and to find out how we could continue the process. Therefore we mostly addressed the generalities,” Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei told journalists at a news conference Tuesday in Tehran.

“Our principles are clear. Our demand is to secure the interests of the Iranian nation based on international norms and the Non-Proliferation Treaty and peaceful use of nuclear energy,” Baghaei said. “So as for the details, we should wait for the next steps and see how this diplomatic process will continue.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also arrived in Washington for talks with Trump. Iran is expected to be the major subject of discussion.

Larijani accused Israel of trying to play a “destructive role” in the talks.

“Americans must think wisely and not allow him, through posturing, to imply before his flight that ’I want to go and teach Americans the framework of the nuclear negotiations,” Larijani said in a post on X.

Elsewhere, US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee said there is “extraordinary alignment” between Washington and Israel over the talks with Tehran.

“Everyone would love to see something that would resolve without a war, but it’ll be up to Iran,” said Huckabee before he boarded a flight to Washington with Netanyahu.

The United States has moved the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, ships and warplanes to the Middle East to pressure Iran into an agreement and have the firepower necessary to strike the country should Trump choose to do so.

Already, US forces shot down a drone they said got too close to the Lincoln and came to the aid of a US-flagged ship that Iranian forces tried to stop in the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow mouth of the Arabian Gulf.

The US Transportation Department's Maritime Administration issued a new warning Monday to American vessels in the strait to “remain as far as possible from Iran’s territorial sea without compromising navigational safety.”

Anti-government chants from people's homes

Meanwhile, people in various neighborhoods of Iran’s capital chanted “death to the dictator” from windows and rooftops on the eve of the anniversary of the 1979 revolution, witnesses said, turning the annual celebration into a protest.

State television in recent days has routinely encouraged people to chant pro-government slogans accompanied by fireworks across the city, an annual ritual in the country. The government plans to hold rallies Wednesday to celebrate the anniversary.

The move came nearly one month after a bloody crackdown in Iran on anti-government protests that led to the deaths of thousands of people and tens of thousands more being detained.

Arab World

Village in Southern Lebanon Buries a Child and Father Killed in Israeli Drone Strike 

Lebanese special forces policemen carry the coffins of their comrade Hassan Jaber, who was killed on Monday with his son Ali, by an Israeli drone attack, during their funeral procession in Yanouh village, south Lebanon, Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2026. (AP)
Lebanese special forces policemen carry the coffins of their comrade Hassan Jaber, who was killed on Monday with his son Ali, by an Israeli drone attack, during their funeral procession in Yanouh village, south Lebanon, Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2026. (AP)
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Village in Southern Lebanon Buries a Child and Father Killed in Israeli Drone Strike 

Lebanese special forces policemen carry the coffins of their comrade Hassan Jaber, who was killed on Monday with his son Ali, by an Israeli drone attack, during their funeral procession in Yanouh village, south Lebanon, Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2026. (AP)
Lebanese special forces policemen carry the coffins of their comrade Hassan Jaber, who was killed on Monday with his son Ali, by an Israeli drone attack, during their funeral procession in Yanouh village, south Lebanon, Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2026. (AP)

Mourners in southern Lebanon on Tuesday buried a father and his young son killed in an Israeli drone strike that targeted a Hezbollah member.

Hassan Jaber, a police officer, and his child, Ali, were on foot when the strike on Monday hit a passing car in the center of their town, Yanouh, relatives said. Lebanon's health ministry said the boy was 3 years old. Both were killed at the scene along with the car driver, Ahmad Salami, who the Israeli military said in a statement was an artillery official with the Lebanese armed group.

It said it was aware of a “claim that uninvolved civilians were killed” and that the case is under review, adding it “makes every effort to reduce the likelihood of harm” to civilians.

Salami, also from Yanouh, was buried in the village Tuesday along with the father and son.

“There are always people here, it’s a crowded area,” with coffee shops and corner stores, a Shiite religious gathering hall, the municipality building and a civil defense center, a cousin of the boy’s father, also named Hassan Jaber, told The Associated Press.

When the boy and his father were struck, he said, they were going to a bakery making Lebanese breakfast flatbread known as manakish to see how it was made. They were standing only about 5 meters (5.5 yards) from the car when it was struck, the cousin said.

“It is not new for the Israeli enemy to carry out such actions,” he said. “There was a car they wanted to hit and they struck it in the middle of this crowded place.”

Jaber said the little boy, Ali, had not yet entered school but “showed signs of unusual intelligence.”

“What did this innocent child do wrong, this angel?” asked Ghazaleh Haider, the wife of the boy’s uncle. “Was he a fighter?”

Attendees at the funeral carried photos of Ali, a striking child with large green eyes and blond hair. Some also carried flags of Hezbollah or of its ally, the Amal party.

Lebanon’s Internal Security Forces, of which the child’s father was a member, said in a statement that the 37-year-old father of three had joined in 2013 and reached the rank of first sergeant.

The strike came as Israel has stepped up its campaign against Hezbollah and its allies in Lebanon.

The night before the strike in Yanouh, Israeli forces launched a rare ground raid in the Lebanese village of Hebbarieh, several kilometers from the border, in which they seized a local official with the Jamaa al-Islamiya group. The group is allied with Hezbollah and the Palestinian group Hamas.

After the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack on Israel triggered war in Gaza, Hezbollah began firing rockets from Lebanon into Israel in support of Hamas and the Palestinians.

Israel responded with airstrikes and shelling. The low-level conflict escalated into full-scale war in September 2024, later reined in but not fully stopped by a US-brokered ceasefire two months later.

Since then, Israel has accused Hezbollah of trying to rebuild and has carried out near-daily strikes in Lebanon that it says target Hezbollah members and facilities.

Israeli forces also continue to occupy five hilltop points on the Lebanese side of the border. Hezbollah has claimed one strike against Israel since the ceasefire.

Arab World

US Sanctions Target Alleged Hezbollah Gold Exchange 

Hezbollah supporters raise their group's flags during a protest condemning recent Israeli military actions in Lebanon and calling on the international community to intervene as tensions escalate along the southern border, outside the headquarters of the UN Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia, ESCWA, in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2026. (AP)
Hezbollah supporters raise their group's flags during a protest condemning recent Israeli military actions in Lebanon and calling on the international community to intervene as tensions escalate along the southern border, outside the headquarters of the UN Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia, ESCWA, in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2026. (AP)
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US Sanctions Target Alleged Hezbollah Gold Exchange 

Hezbollah supporters raise their group's flags during a protest condemning recent Israeli military actions in Lebanon and calling on the international community to intervene as tensions escalate along the southern border, outside the headquarters of the UN Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia, ESCWA, in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2026. (AP)
Hezbollah supporters raise their group's flags during a protest condemning recent Israeli military actions in Lebanon and calling on the international community to intervene as tensions escalate along the southern border, outside the headquarters of the UN Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia, ESCWA, in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2026. (AP)

The United States on Tuesday imposed sanctions against a gold exchange it said facilitates Iranian financial support to Lebanon’s Hezbollah.

The Treasury Department said the targeted gold exchange was part of Al-Qard al-Hassan, a Hezbollah financial institution already under US sanctions and whose branches were bombed by Israel in 2024 strikes.

"Hezbollah is a threat to peace and stability in the Middle East," Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement.

"Treasury will work to cut these terrorists off from the global financial system to give Lebanon a chance to be peaceful and prosperous again."

The Treasury Department imposed sanctions on the gold exchange, Jood Sarl, which it said "masquerades as a non-governmental organization" and is used to ensure Hezbollah's cash flow from Iran.

It also said it was imposing sanctions on a number of individuals or entities, including a Russian national, for working on Hezbollah's finances.

The sanctions freeze any assets in the United States and make financial transactions with the listed entities a crime.

Israel struck a major blow against Hezbollah in the 2024 war, killing its longtime leader Hassan Nasrallah, a year after Hamas, another group backed by Iran, carried out a devastating attack against Israel.

In accordance with a truce, the Lebanese army said it had disarmed Hezbollah in an area close to the Israeli border. But Hezbollah has refused to surrender further arms and Israel says progress is insufficient, keeping up periodic attacks.