Witkoff speaks to Egyptian FM on stalled Gaza ceasefire talks

US special envoy Steve Witkoff and Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty discussed the need to intensify pressure to reach a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal as soon as possible, according to a readout from Cairo about a phone call the pair held earlier today.

The call was held before Witkoff departs for Israel, where he will meet with officials in Jerusalem on Thursday to discuss efforts to secure the release of the hostages, end the war, and alleviate the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

Witkoff and Abdelatty “exchanged views on the joint efforts of the three guarantor parties—Egypt, the United States, and Qatar—to secure a ceasefire by intensifying pressure so that an agreement to be reached as soon as possible,” the Egyptian readout says.

Abdelatty stressed that the “humanitarian catastrophe in the Gaza Strip resulted from blatant Israeli violations and the use of starvation as a weapon against Palestinians,” the readout adds. Israel has denied using hunger as a weapon, arguing that it has facilitated the entry of enough aid into the Strip, but this is after it maintained a blockade for 78 days.