By Janet Ekstract ISTANBUL -As a new round of talks get underway in Cairo to press for a ceasefire and hostage deal, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan is in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia for a meeting of the Contact Group, formed by the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and Arab League. The group’s goal is to end the war in Gaza and create a permanent peace between Palestine and Israel. Fidan had previously toured major world capitals in past months with other members of the Contact Group in diplomatic efforts to end the violence in Gaza. Fidan will hold bilateral talks on the sidelines of the meeting. During the meeting, steps were discussed about how Palestine can be recognized in its own right as a state. Discussions also talked about how to pressure countries who support Israel. The Contact Group meeting comes in the run-up to the OIC Summit scheduled to meet in Banjul, Gambia on May 4. According to sources, Fidan will held talks on Sunday and will hold talks on Monday with the foreign ministers of Jordan, Norway and Yemen along with Josep Borrell – High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy. Fidan was also in Qatar recently and hosted the Egyptian foreign minister, he was also in meetings with Turkish President Erdogan and Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Istanbul on April 20.
Meanwhile, news reports indicate that Egyptian and Qatari mediators are scheduled to meet for new ceasefire talks with Hamas leaders in Cairo. Hamas officials on Sunday, said a delegation led by Khalil al-Hayya, the group deputy Gaza chief of Hamas is expected to discuss a ceasefire proposal that Hamas gave Qatari and Egyptian mediators. It’s uncertain about when Israel will respond and U.S. mediators are urging a deal be done as quickly as possible. Speaking to Reuters, two Hamas officials were not forthcoming about any current proposals for a ceasefire though a source briefed on the talks told Reuters Hamas is expected to answer Israel’s latest ceasefire proposal that was delivered Saturday. The U.S. has urged Israel’s Prime Minister Netanyahu not to make a major strike on Rafah where over 1.5 million Palestinians are currently sheltering. A source close to the talks, said the proposed agreement would accept the release of fewer than 40 hostages in exchange for releasing Palestinians held in Israeli jails and to a second phase of a truce that includes a “period of sustained calm” as a compromise from Israel on Hamas’s demand for a permanent ceasefire. The source added that after the first phase, Israel would allow free movement between the south and northern areas of Gaza and a partial withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza. In addition, a senior Hamas official on Monday, told Reuters that talks in Cairo will take place between the Hamas delegation and the Qatari and Egyptian mediators to discuss remarks the group has made about the Israeli response to a recent ceasefire proposal.
Photo : AA
