Egypt hosting Fatah-Hamas talks on postwar Gaza governance, as part of truce efforts
Sources say talks are focused on putting together a committee of non-aligned Palestinian figures to comply with Israel’s demand that neither group run the Strip after the war
Senior officials of the rival Palestinian groups Fatah and Hamas have been meeting in Cairo to discuss forming a committee to manage Gaza’s postwar governance, an Egyptian security source was quoted as saying by Egypt’s Al Qahera News TV on Saturday.
The talks are part of Egypt’s broader mediation efforts to broker a ceasefire between Israel and terror group Hamas and to expand humanitarian access to the enclave.
Leaders from Hamas and the Fatah faction of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas met in Cairo last month to discuss forming the committee based on a proposal put forward by Egypt, but talks were adjourned for later discussion, sources close to the talks told Reuters.
The sources said the committee would be made up of independent Palestinian figures not aligned with a particular movement, addressing the question of who would run Gaza after the ongoing war is over.
Israel rejects any role by Hamas in Gaza after the war is ended and has said it does not trust the rival Palestinian Authority of Abbas to run the enclave.
Mediators, including Egypt and Qatar with backing from the United States, have so far failed to secure a truce that would end the war and facilitate a release of Israeli and foreign hostages held by Hamas, in exchange for Palestinian security prisoners held by Israel for crimes that include terror offenses.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has stated that the war will continue until Hamas is dismantled. The terror group has demanded an end to the war and has rejected any hostage deal that doesn’t include an upfront commitment from Israel to end hostilities and withdraw its forces from the Strip, which Jerusalem says would leave Hamas free to plan a repeat of its October 7, 2023, onslaught that killed some 1,200 and resulted in the kidnapping of 251 hostages.
Hamas political official Izzat al-Risheq dismissed proposals of limited or temporary truces as “smokescreens.”
“We are positively open to any proposals or ideas that ensure the cessation of aggression and the withdrawal of occupation forces from Gaza,” al-Risheq said in a statement.
According to the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry, 43,314 Palestinians have been killed and 102,019 injured in the fighting so far, though the toll cannot be verified and does not differentiate between civilians and fighters. Israel says it has killed some 18,000 combatants in battle and another 1,000 terrorists inside Israel on October 7.
