A Hamas delegation is due in Cairo Friday to give its "observations" about an Egyptian plan for a ceasefire that would end the war in Gaza, a Hamas official told AFP on Thursday.
The plan was put last week to officials of Hamas and Islamic Jihad, when the heads of both organizations visited the Egyptian capital.
Sources close to Hamas say Cairo's three-stage plan provides for renewable ceasefires, a staggered release of hostages held by Hamas in exchange for terrorist prisoners in Israel, and ultimately a ceasefire to end the war.
It also provides for a Palestinian Arab government of technocrats after talks involving "all Palestinian factions", which would be responsible for governing and rebuilding in post-war Gaza.
The Hamas official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told AFP on Thursday about the planned visit by the Qatar-based Hamas political office.
"A high-level delegation from the Hamas political office will visit Cairo tomorrow to meet Egyptian officials and give the response of the Palestinian factions, including several observations, to their plan," the official said.
The official said these observations focus on "the modalities of the planned exchanges and the number of Palestinian prisoners to be freed, as well as obtaining guarantees for a complete Israeli military withdrawal from Gaza".
A previous deal which saw Hamas free 80 hostages during a week-long truce was brokered by Qatar and backed by Egypt and the United States.
Earlier this week, US President Joe Biden spoke with Emir Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani of Qatar amid the efforts to achieve another hostage release deal.
According to a statement from the White House, the two “discussed the urgent effort to secure the release of all remaining hostages held by Hamas, including American citizens.”
“The leaders also discussed the ongoing efforts to facilitate increased and sustained flows of life-saving access to humanitarian aid into Gaza,” the statement added.
On Thursday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with representatives of the families of the hostages in Tel Aviv.
At the beginning of the meeting, Netanyahu stated: "We are holding negotiations even at this very moment. I can not elaborate on the status, but we are working to bring back everyone. That is our goal."
