Gaza ceasefire talk swirls as officials push for agreement

WASHINGTON: Uncertainty surrounded Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s whereabouts today after sources briefed on talks about a Gaza ceasefire said he was travelling to Cairo but his office said he was on the northern border with Syria.

The sources said a ceasefire deal could be signed in coming days that would end the fighting and free hostages held by the Islamist movement Hamas in Gaza in exchange for Palestinian prisoners.

Hamas issued a statement saying a deal was possible if Israel stopped setting new conditions.

A statement from Netanyahu’s office said the prime minister had a meeting today with senior military and security officials on Mount Hermon, a strategic plateau just inside Syria.

The prime minister’s office did not respond to questions about Netanyahu’s whereabouts.

He had been excused today from giving previously scheduled testimony at his corruption trial.

Two Egyptian security sources said that Netanyahu was not in Cairo “at this moment” but that a meeting was under way to work through the remaining points, chief among them a Hamas demand for guarantees that any immediate deal would lead to a comprehensive agreement later.

The Egyptian sources said they were making progress and felt that tonight could be decisive in setting next steps.

US and Israeli officials have been expressing growing optimism that negotiations brokered by Egypt and Qatar could produce a deal by the end of the month but have also cautioned that the talks could fall through.