Qatar, Egypt to host Israel-Hamas talks for truce in Gaza

CAIRO, Egypt

Two rounds of talks will be held in Qatar and Egypt respectively to reach an agreement on a truce in the Gaza Strip that is currently under massive Israeli siege and bombardment, Egypt's Al-Qahera News reported on Sunday.

A woman holds a sign during a protest rally against the war in Gaza and calling for a ceasefire, in Tel Aviv, Israel, on Feb. 24, 2024

"The Doha and Cairo discussions will be held with the participation of specialists from Egypt, Qatar, the United States and Israel, in addition to a delegation from the Hamas movement, in continuation of what was discussed in the recent Paris meeting," Al-Qahera News quoted an unnamed Egyptian official as saying.

The talks in Doha and Cairo seek to reach an agreement on a truce in Gaza along with exchanging Palestinian prisoners and Israeli hostages, according to the report.

Israel has been waging a war on Gaza after Gaza-ruling Hamas launched a deadly surprise attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing about 1,200 Israelis and taking more than 200 as hostages.

Since then, the ongoing Israeli military assaults have killed 29,692 Palestinians and injured 69,879 others, according to the latest data released by Gaza's Health Ministry on Sunday.

Egypt, Qatar and the United States mediated a week-long truce between Israel and Hamas that ended in late November 2023, which included a swap between Palestinian prisoners and Israeli hostages and more humanitarian aid delivery to Gaza.