Hamas Continues Dialogue with Egyptian Officials Regarding Ceasefire with Israel

Hamas representatives and Egyptian officials continued their dialogue sessions on Sunday in Cairo to discuss their ceasefire with Israel, according to a Palestinian news website run by the so-called political-wing of Hamas.

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The Palestinian media claimed that a Hamas delegation met with Egypt's intelligence director Omar Suleima to discuss their shaky truce with Israel and the possible reopening of Gaza border crossings. While Hamas representatives met with Egyptian security leaders, commanders of other Palestinian groups such as Islamic Jihad in Gaza said they received an Egyptian invitation to join the ceasefire dialogue in Cairo. The Islamic Jihad and several left-wing parties are planning to head to Egypt soon., according to a US State Department statement. The Syrian-based Hamas commander Mohamed Nazzal told the Hamas-run news website that the discussion with Suleima will "focus on the truce, reopening border crossings and the case of captive Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit." Nazzal added that "the issue of arms smuggling will be discussed, but Hamas is not interested [sic] to discuss because arms are not smuggled from Egypt to Gaza, it is smuggled from Gaza to Egypt." Ayman Taha, a de facto Hamas truce negotiator, who is currently meeting Egyptian security officials in Cairo, had earlier told news reporters that "the aim of the talks with Egyptian officials is first to reach a long term ceasefire [with Israel]." The Hamas-run news website published conditions to achieve a ceasefire, saying that "Hamas wants a ceasefire [sic] with all border crossings permanently opened and end the full tight blockade on Gaza Strip." Hamas also demands that the Rafah border crossing between Gaza Strip and Egypt be reopened "because it is the only Gaza window to the outside world." "Hamas accepts the presence of European observers as well as security officers belong to President Mahmoud Abbas, within certain arrangement that Hamas refused to give more details about it," said the website. Eight days ago, Hamas and other Gaza militant groups accepted a one-week ceasefire with Israel to give diplomats an chance to reinforce "a longer [sic] term of a ceasefire between Hamas and Israel.

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