Egypt hosts Fatah-Hamas post-war Gaza talks as part of ceasefire efforts

By Nidal al-Mughrabi, Adam Makary and Ahmed Tolba

(Reuters) -Senior officials of the rival Palestinian groups Fatah and Hamas are meeting in Cairo to discuss forming a committee to manage Gaza's post-war governance, an Egyptian security source was quoted as saying by Egypt's Al Qahera News TV on Saturday.

The talks are part of Egypt's broader mediation efforts to broker a ceasefire between Israel and militant group Hamas and to expand humanitarian access to the enclave.

Leaders from Hamas and the Fatah faction of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas met in Cairo last month to discuss forming the committee based on a proposal put forward by Egypt, but talks were adjourned for later discussion, sources close to the talks told Reuters.

The sources said the committee would be made up of independent Palestinian figures not aligned to a particular movement, addressing the question of who would run Gaza after the year-long war is over.

Israel rejects any role by Hamas in Gaza after the war is ended and has said it does not trust the rival Palestinian Authority of Abbas to run the enclave.

Mediators, including Egypt and Qatar with backing from the United States, have so far failed to secure a truce that would end the Gaza war and facilitate a release of Israeli and foreign hostages held by Hamas, along with thousands of Palestinians detained by Israel.

Hamas is pressing for an end to hostilities while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has stated that the war will continue until Hamas is dismantled.

Hamas political official Izzat al-Risheq dismissed proposals of limited or temporary truces as "smokescreens".

"We are positively open to any proposals or ideas that ensure the cessation of aggression and the withdrawal of occupation forces from Gaza," al-Risheq said in a statement.

The conflict continues to exact a heavy humanitarian toll, with medics reporting that five Palestinians were killed in an Israeli air strike on Gaza's Bureij refugee camp on Saturday.

Palestinian health officials said at least 60 people had been killed by Israeli military strikes across Gaza Strip since Friday.

In the latest round of violence, Islamic Jihad, a Palestinian militant group allied with Hamas, said it launched rockets at Sderot, Mefalsim and other Israeli territory near the Gaza border late on Saturday.

The Israeli military said two projectiles crossed from northern Gaza, landing in an open area but caused no injuries.

The war erupted after Hamas-led militants attacked Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages back to Gaza, according to Israeli tallies.

Israel's retaliatory offensives have killed more than 43,000 Palestinians and reduced most of Gaza to rubble.

(Reporting by Nidal Al Mughrabi; editing by Jason Neely and Ros Russell)