Qatari delegation engages in talks in Cairo with Hamas and U.S. officials aiming for a Gaza deal.

A Qatari delegation headed to Cairo on Saturday for a new round of talks that included officials from Hamas and the United States aimed at reaching a ceasefire in Gaza and a captives release deal, sources told Al Jazeera.

The negotiations took place after Hamas submitted its response to the mediators over the weekend regarding a proposal that entailed a 124-day truce, though Israel has yet to send a delegation to Cairo for the talks.

Under the truce, Israel would release a number of Palestinian prisoners from its jails in exchange for the release of some captives from Hamas before reaching a ceasefire.

Hamas reportedly accepted the proposal presented by Egypt for the deal after the removal of Israel’s objection to several names of Palestinian prisoners to be released under the potential deal, sources told Al Sharq News.

The sources also said Hamas accepted it on the condition of guarantees by the U.S. that the war ends and that Israeli forces completely withdraw from Gaza by the third and final phase.

Separate sources told Al Jazeera on Saturday that the negotiations are at “a critical point” with a technical team from Qatar and Egypt working on the details of a potential deal.

“Usually technical teams are indications that we are moving to the operational aspect of an agreement. There are phases in this agreement, and they will try to pin down the details of those phases,” Al Jazeera’s Hashem Ahelbarra reported.

The proposed deal is split into three phases, each lasting 40-42 days, according to Al Sharq.

During the first phase, Hamas would release 33 women soldiers and civilians in exchange for the release of around 1,000 Palestinians from Israeli prisons. 

The same 40-day phase would enable the return of displaced people to northern Gaza in addition to the withdrawal of occupation forces from the roads splitting the north and the south.

The second stage would take place for 42 days, allowing for ceasefire talks to continue and for Israel and Hamas to negotiate the exchange of the remaining captives and Palestinian prisoners.

By the third and final stage, also lasting 42 days, an agreement should be reached on Israel’s withdrawal from Gaza after the exchange of bodies and remains between the two parties.

Cautious optimism

Senior Hamas official Osama Hamdan told Al Jazeera on Saturday that the negotiations were “moving forward” and “there are some good points.”

“But till now, we are still talking about the main issue, which is the complete ceasefire and complete withdrawal from Gaza. We hope to find some good and positive answers today,” he added.

Hamdan noted that one of the key issues being discussed was Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s plans to launch the Rafah invasion. 

“Unfortunately, there was a clear statement from Netanyahu saying that regardless of what may happen, if there was a ceasefire or not, he will continue the attack,” Hamdan said. 

“That means there will be no ceasefire, and that means that the attack will be continued, which is against what we are discussing,” he stressed.

The latest round of talks is taking place under a climate of cautious optimism after a prolonged stalemate since the expiration of the previous truce last year, mediated by Qatar and Egypt.

The truce lasted between November 24 and December 1 and led to the release of at least 109 captives from Hamas in Gaza. Israel also released 242 Palestinian prisoners, including women and children, though some have been re-arrested.

Despite the fresh hopes over the current talks, Israel insisted on its ground invasion of Rafah as Israeli cabinet minister Benny Gantz said the Israeli government has yet to discuss the deal.

“An answer to the outline of the deal has not yet been received. When it is received, the war cabinet will convene and discuss it,” Gantz said in a statement.

“Until then, I suggest to all ‘political elements’ and all decision-makers to wait for official updates, behave calmly, and not go into hysteria for political reasons,” he added.

Meanwhile, Israel reportedly briefed the Biden administration over plans to evacuate Palestinians from Rafah ahead of its operation in the city, U.S. officials familiar with the talks told the Associated Press on Sunday.

Rafah is densely populated with more than one million people seeking shelter in fragile tents, including people forcibly displaced by Israeli forces from the north.

The invasion of Rafah would be catastrophic and leave the population with nowhere to flee other than to neighbouring Egypt.

Israel has already killed at least 34,654 people in Gaza since launching the brutal genocidal war on October 7, 2023, while creating a humanitarian catastrophe.

Speaking at a joint press conference with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on April 3, Qatar’s Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani stressed that the move would only lead to another genocide.

“We don’t see any country but Israel supporting an attack on Rafah. You cannot corner the people, around 50 percent of the population in Gaza, almost 10 percent of the Strip, and attack them,” Sheikh Mohammed, who is also Qatar’s foreign minister, said.

“It won’t happen without committing a major genocide besides the genocide being committed in Gaza,” he added.