Overview
- The U.S. delegation led by Aryeh Lightstone, joined by envoy Nickolay Mladenov, met Hamas negotiator Khalil al-Hayya in Cairo on Tuesday in the first such contact since the ceasefire.
- The talks sought a path to the next phase that would include Hamas disarming, an international force taking up security duties, and an Israeli pullout from parts of Gaza.
- Negotiators remain stuck on sequencing, with Israel pushing for disarmament first while Hamas says Israel must halt strikes and let in far more aid before any next step.
- A senior Hamas figure called the mediators’ paper unbalanced and said Mladenov relayed veiled threats of a return to war if Hamas refused.
- Since the October pause, Israeli strikes have killed more than 765 people in Gaza, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry, which leaves the truce fragile and raises the risk of renewed fighting.