Peace deal: Hamas calls for swift hostage-prisoner swap as talks begin

By Nkiruka Nnorom, with bureau report

Following the bid program projected by the US President, Donald Trump, to extremity the warfare successful Gaza, Hamas yesterday called for a swift commencement to a hostage-prisoner speech with Israel, arsenic negotiators from some sides prepared to conscionable successful Egypt for important talks aimed astatine ending the astir two-year war.

Foreign ministers of respective countries, including Egypt, said the talks were a existent accidental to execute a sustainable ceasefire.

“Hamas is precise keen to scope an statement to extremity the warfare and instantly statesman the captive speech process successful accordance with the tract conditions,” AFP quoted a elder Hamas official, who preferred anonymity, arsenic saying.

The diplomatic propulsion follows the Palestinian militant group’s affirmative effect to US President Trump’s roadmap for an extremity to the warring and the merchandise of captives successful Gaza successful speech for Palestinians held successful Israeli jails. According to Trump’s plan, successful instrumentality for the hostages, Israel is expected to merchandise 250 Palestinian prisoners with beingness sentences and much than 1,700 detainees from the Gaza Strip who were arrested aft the warfare began.

US Secretary of State Macro Rubio connected Sunday urged Israel to halt bombing Gaza up of the discussions successful Egypt.

“You can’t merchandise hostages successful the mediate of strikes, truthful the strikes volition person to stop,” Rubio told CBS News speech amusement “Face the Nation”.

“There can’t beryllium a warfare going connected successful the mediate of it.” Negotiators are owed to stitchery successful the Egyptian edifice municipality of Sharm El-Sheikh, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressing anticipation that the hostages could beryllium released wrong days.

An Israeli authorities spokesperson said the country’s delegation near connected Sunday evening, with talks slated to commencement contiguous — the eve of the 2nd day of the October 7, 2023 Hamas onslaught that sparked the war.

Cairo confirmed it would beryllium hosting a delegation from Hamas for talks connected “the crushed conditions and details of the speech of each Israeli detainees and Palestinian prisoners”.

The White House has said Trump had besides sent 2 envoys to Egypt — his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, and Middle East negotiator Steve Witkoff.

“During communications with mediators, Hamas insisted that it is indispensable for Israel to halt subject operations crossed each areas of the Gaza Strip, cease each air, reconnaissance, and drone activity, and retreat from wrong Gaza City,” a Palestinian root adjacent to Hamas said, adding the radical would “also halt their subject operations” successful parallel.

Militants seized 251 hostages during their October 7 attack, 47 of whom are inactive successful Gaza. Of those, the Israeli subject says 25 are dead.

The station Peace deal: Hamas calls for swift hostage-prisoner swap arsenic talks begin appeared archetypal connected Vanguard News.