Expanded session of Gaza ceasefire talks opens in Egypt’s Sharm el-Sheikh

By Rania Abu Shamala

ISTANBUL (AA) - An expanded session of Gaza ceasefire negotiations began in Egypt’s Red Sea resort city of Sharm el-Sheikh on Wednesday to reach an agreement to end the Israeli war on the enclave under US President Donald Trump’s plan, Egyptian media said.

According to the state-run Al-Qahera News channel, besides US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, the list of participants includes Turkish intelligence chief Ibrahim Kalin, Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman, Egyptian intelligence chief Hassan Rashad, and Israeli Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer.

Hamas and Israel have held indirect negotiations in Egypt since Monday in an attempt to reach an agreement to end two years of Israeli attacks on Gaza.

On Sept. 29, Trump unveiled a 20-point proposal that includes the release of all Israeli captives in exchange for Palestinian prisoners, a ceasefire, the disarmament of Hamas, and the rebuilding of Gaza. Hamas agreed to the plan in principle.

The Israeli military has killed more than 67,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children, in Gaza since October 2023. The relentless bombardment has rendered the enclave all but uninhabitable and has led to mass displacement, starvation and the proliferation of disease.