• Urges Trump to meet and ‘respect’ freed Palestinian prisoners
• China calls for ‘comprehensive, lasting ceasefire’ in Gaza

CAIRO: A high-level delegation from the Palestinian group Hamas arrived in Cairo on Friday to discuss the Gaza ceasefire agreement and push negotiations aimed at entering the second phase of the deal, the Egyptian information authority said in a statement.

Two senior Hamas officials also confirmed that delegation is in Cairo. “The delegation will meet with Egyptian officials on Saturday to discuss the latest developments, assess progress in implementing the ceasefire agreement and address matters related to launching the second phase of the deal,” one official told AFP.

During its talks with Egyptian mediators, the Hamas delegation will demand that Israel “implement the agreement, begin negotiations for the second phase, and open the border crossings to allow humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip,” he said.

The Palestinian group seeks a “comprehensive agreement that ensures a permanent and complete ceasefire,” the other official said.

He said Hamas’ demands for the second phase include a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, an end to the blockade, the reconstruction of the territory and financial support based on the decisions of this week’s Arab summit in Cairo.

He also said that Hamas was ready to “negotiate a prisoner exchange to release all Israeli prisoners including those with American citizenship”.

US President Donald Trump had warned the people of Gaza on Wednesday that they would be “DEAD” if all the remaining prisoners held in the territory were not freed “now, not later”.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Friday called for a “lasting ceasefire” in Gaza at a press conference in Beijing. “If major powers genuinely care about the people of Gaza, they should promote a comprehensive and lasting ceasefire in Gaza and increase humanitarian assistance,” Wang said.

The ceasefire’s first phase ended last weekend, after six weeks of relative calm that included exchanges of Israeli prisoners for Palestinians.

While Israel has said it wants to extend the first phase until mid-April, Hamas has insisted on a transition to the deal’s second phase, which should lead to a permanent end to the war.

‘Respect freed Palestinians’

Hamas on Friday urged US President Donald Trump to meet Palestinian prisoners freed during the ongoing truce in Gaza, following his meeting with released Israeli prisoners the day before.

Just as he spoke of the “unbearable suffering” of Israeli prisoners, the US president should “show the same level of respect to freed Palestinian political prisoners and allocate time to meet and listen to their stories”, senior Hamas leader Basem Naim wrote in an open letter addressed to Trump.

More than 9,500 Palestinian prisoners were currently being held in Israeli prisons, he said.

On Thursday, Trump met in the Oval Office with eight former Israeli prisoners who were released as part of the truce agreement that took effect on January 19.

The first phase of the agreement led to the release of 33 prisoners, including eight who were deceased, in exchange for about 1,800 Palestinian detainees.

In late November 2023, 105 prisoners had already been freed during a one-week truce in exchange for 240 Palestinians.

Of the 251 people abducted during Hamas’ attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, 58 are still being held in Gaza, 34 of whom have been declared dead by the Israeli military.

Published in Dawn, March 8th, 2025