Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner and middle east envoy Steve Witkoff (AP image)
President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner and senior US envoy Steve Witkoff are travelling to Egypt to advance ceasefire negotiations between Israel and Hamas, the White House said on Saturday. The move follows Hamas’ announcement that it is ready to release Israeli hostages under Trump’s proposed peace plan, two years after the conflict began.
A White House official said the envoys will finalise the technical details of a hostage release and discuss a long-term ceasefire agreement, according to the Guardian.Egypt will host delegations from Israel and Hamas on Monday to discuss the proposed exchange of Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners, the country’s foreign ministry confirmed.Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also confirmed that Israel’s negotiating team would travel to Egypt to finalise the technical aspects of the proposed Gaza deal, saying he hoped to announce the release of all hostages soon.“I have instructed the negotiating team to go to Egypt to finalise the technical details. The intention is to limit the negotiations to a few days,” Netanyahu said in a televised statement.Israeli PM said that he hopes to bring all hostages home in the coming days, coinciding with the Jewish festival of Sukkot. Speaking on Saturday, he emphasised that Hamas would be disarmed either through diplomacy under Trump’s plan or militarily by Israel.The talks come a month after Israeli airstrikes in Qatar killed six Hamas negotiators, derailing previous ceasefire efforts. Despite Trump urging Israel to halt its bombing in response to Hamas’ declaration, attacks continued over the weekend.Palestinian authorities reported at least 17 deaths, mostly women and children in Gaza City, with dozens more injured. Israeli drones also targeted gatherings in central Gaza and al-Mawasi, previously designated as “safe zones.”Hamas condemned Israel’s continued military operations, accusing Netanyahu of lying about reducing attacks on civilians. Earlier on Saturday, Israeli army radio reported that operations would be limited to “defensive” strikes.Trump, in a post on Truth Social, welcomed Israel’s temporary pause in bombing but warned Hamas to act quickly or risk losing the deal.Trump has described the negotiations as close to completion. In an interview with Axios, he said that Israel had agreed to an initial withdrawal line, which had been shared with Hamas and that once Hamas accepts it, the ceasefire and the hostages-prisoner exchange would begin. He emphasised his intention to restore international support for Israel, which has faced criticism over the deaths of tens of thousands of Palestinians during the military campaign.Trump also praised Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan for helping pressure Hamas to agree to the hostage release. “Erdoğan helped a lot. He is a tough guy, but he is a friend of mine and he was great,” US President said.Israel has stated that its military actions are acts of self-defence, rejecting UN findings and academic assessments that it has committed genocide in Gaza. Trump argued that his plan could help rehabilitate Israel’s global image and secure a diplomatic victory for Netanyahu.
