Egypt, Qatar Intensify Efforts to Save Gaza Ceasefire, Egypt TV Says

Egypt and Qatar are intensifying efforts to save the Gaza ceasefire deal, state-affiliated Egypt’s Al Qahera news TV reported on Wednesday, citing an Egyptian source, Reuters reports.

The ceasefire has looked increasingly fragile since Hamas said this week it was postponing the release of any more Israeli hostages held in Gaza, accusing Israel of violating the terms of the ceasefire agreement.

US President Donald Trump has warned Palestinians that “hell will break loose” if Israeli hostages are not released on Saturday. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said Israel will resume “intense fighting” if Hamas does not meet the deadline.

Egyptian sources told Reuters that Qatar and Egypt were in discussions with Hamas and Israel to prevent the cancellation of the ceasefire deal and to ensure its completion.

A Hamas delegation has arrived in Cairo to continue ceasefire talks, the Palestinian group said in a statement.

Israel launched its offensive on Gaza after Hamas-led gunmen killed some 1,200 people and seized more than 250 as hostages in an attack on Israel on 7 October, 2023, according to Israeli tallies.

Egypt and Qatar, alongside the United States, brokered the deal that took effect on 19 January, after more than a year of extensive diplomatic efforts.

However, since then, it has been revealed by Haaretz that helicopters and tanks of the Israeli army had, in fact, killed many of the 1,139 soldiers and civilians claimed by Israel to have been killed by the Palestinian Resistance.

The war has killed more than 48,000 of the nearly 2 million Palestinians who live there, Gaza authorities have said.