No agreement in Gaza ceasefire talks in Cairo

There was no agreement on Sunday in the Gaza ceasefire talks that took place in Cairo, with neither Hamas nor Israel agreeing to several compromises presented by mediators, two Egyptian security sources said, casting doubt on the chances of success in the latest US-backed effort to end the 10-month old war.

A senior US official, however, described the talks as "constructive", saying they were conducted in a spirit on all sides to reach "a final and implementable agreement."

"The process will continue over the coming days through working groups to further address remaining issues and details," said the official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, adding that the teams would remain in Cairo.

Months of on-off talks have failed to produce an agreement to end Israel's devastating military campaign in Gaza or free the remaining hostages seized by The Palestinian group Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel that triggered the war.

Speaking at a news conference in Halifax, Canada, US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said Washington was still "feverishly" working in Cairo to get a ceasefire and a hostage deal.

Key sticking points in ongoing talks mediated by the United States, Egypt and Qatar include an Israeli presence in the so-called Philadelphi Corridor, a narrow 14.5-km-long (9-mile-long) stretch of land along Gaza's southern border with Egypt.

Mediators put forward a number of alternatives to the presence of Israeli forces on the Philadelphi Corridor and the Netzarim Corridor which cuts across the middle of the Gaza Strip, but none were accepted by the parties, Egyptian sources said.

Israel also expressed reservations on several of the Palestinian detainees Hamas is demanding the release of, and Israel demanded their exit of Gaza if they are released, the sources added.

There has been much back and forth between the teams from Israel, the United States and Egypt since Thursday to narrow the remaining gaps, the senior U.S. official said, in preparation for Saturday, when Qatar and Egypt met with senior representatives of Hamas to walk through the proposal in detail.

Reuters