Nickolay Mladenov, the Board of Peace's lead envoy for Gaza, is expected to arrive in Cairo on Tuesday as part of renewed political efforts to push forward the Gaza ceasefire, revealed sources.
A delegation from the Hamas movement is also expected to visit the Egyptian capital to join other members of the group and representatives of Palestinian factions who have been there for weeks.
Asharq Al-Awsat learned that Mladenov will visit Israel hours after arriving in Cairo. He will address with Israeli officials recent discussions that were held with Hamas. The officials will convey their positions on the new proposals over the ceasefire agreement that were drafted in coordination with mediators, notably Egypt.
In Cairo, Mladenov will meet with Hamas leaders and the mediators as part of consultations to reach a final framework that brings together all parties to implement the ceasefire to ensure that it can move forward to its next phase that includes the disarmament of factions in Gaza
Negotiations have hit a snag over Hamas and other factions’ insistence on Israel fulfilling its first phase commitments related to relief and allowing the entry of trucks into Gaza before they can be demanded to make any commitments on their end.
Israel and the United States, meanwhile, are demanding moving forward towards the most significant part of the second phase: disarmament.
A leading Hamas source told Asharq Al-Awsat that the movement is “open to dealing positively with all proposals, but it is insistent on Israel implementing everything that is demanded of it in the first phase, especially in ceasing its ongoing violations, ensuring the entry of relief and kicking of reconstruction of hospital and school infrastructure.”
The source said that Hamas “does not mind” discussions over its weapons, “but tying the issue to limited humanitarian causes without making clear stances over reconstruction, governance of the enclave and the future of the political path will lead towards the unknown.”
“The situation will remain unchanged as long as there are attempts to impose conditions that the movement and other Gaza factions refuse,” it added.
Israel must implement its commitments to the first phase of the ceasefire, urged the source. Hamas has agreed to discuss the second phase even as Israel carries out its first phase conditions.
