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CAIRO — Hamas plans to send a delegation to Cairo “as soon as possible” to continue cease-fire talks to end the <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/israel-hamas-war/" target="_blank" class="contextual_link">war in Gaza</a>, the group’s political chief, Ismail Haniyeh, said Thursday.

In a statement, released after a phone call with Egyptian intelligence minister, Maj. Gen. Abbas Kamel, Haniyeh said the deliberations were moving forward with a “positive spirit.”

The delegation could arrive as early as Friday, said a former Egyptian official with knowledge of the talks. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive negotiations.

Egypt, along with Qatar, has played a mediating role in the discussions to reach an agreement. Israel revived the stalled talks last week after Hamas released videos of three Israeli hostages, galvanizing the family members of those still held captive to put more pressure on the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken, on a trip to the region this week, urged Hamas to accept the latest Israeli proposal, with other U.S. officials warning that it may be the “last chance” to avoid more fighting in Gaza. According to Israeli and Arab media reports, the deal would start with a temporary truce and the phased release by Hamas of the remaining Israeli and foreign hostages.

Hamas-led fighters kidnapped more than 250 people from southern Israel in a blitz attack on Oct. 7. On Thursday, Kibbutz Beeri, which was attacked by Hamas militants, announced that Dror Or, one of the Israelis believed to be among the hostages in Gaza, was killed during the assault in October.

His body is believed to be held by Hamas in Gaza, according to a statement from the kibbutz.

Israel responded to the Oct. 7 attack with a punishing air and ground campaign in Gaza, where more than 34,000 people have now been killed.

Hamas leaders, however, are “asking for guarantees” that Israel will adhere to a permanent cease-fire as part of the agreement, according to the Egyptian official. Israel has vowed to press ahead with an invasion of Rafah in the southern <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/10/09/gaza-strip-israel-hamas-explained/" target="_blank" class="contextual_link">Gaza Strip</a>, where it says Hamas’s last remaining battalions are holed up.

“We will enter Rafah, and we will eliminate the Hamas battalions there — with or without a deal, in order to achieve the total victory,” Netanyahu said this week.

The United States has warned Israel against invading Rafah, which now hosts more than 1 million displaced Palestinians who fled fighting elsewhere in the enclave.

Asked by reporters about Netanyahu’s comments on Wednesday, Blinken reiterated U.S. opposition to a ground invasion of Rafah and said he wouldn’t discuss hypotheticals. “People say things,” Blinken said. “Let’s focus on what they’re doing, what we’re doing.”

The secretary’s visit to the region, including Israel, was focused in part on increasing the flow of aid into Gaza, where the population is facing severe hunger. On Thursday, a convoy of 30 trucks carrying aid from the World Food Program entered northern Gaza through the Erez crossing, U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.

He called the delivery a “significant step forward” for the organization’s aid work in Gaza.

<i>Brown reported from Washington, Soroka from Tel Aviv. Karen DeYoung in Washington contributed to this report.</i>

Heba Farouk Mahfouz is a reporter/researcher in The Post’s Cairo bureau. She joined the paper in 2016 and has covered human rights, gender issues, the economy, religious minorities and the war in Gaza. Mahfouz previously reported for the Japanese News Agency in Cairo and Egypt's leading independent news website, Mada Masr.

Heba Farouk Mahfouz 

Columbia University, Masters in International Affairs

Middlebury College, BA in Political Science

Cate Brown is a researcher for The Post's International Investigations team.

Cate Brown

Lior Soroka

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