The US president and the Palestinian Authority hope that the ceasefire will come into force before Ramadan, which starts in a week.
Israel and Hamas are negotiating on starting a ceasefire possibly as early as next week. The negotiations are scheduled to continue in Cairo tomorrow, Sunday, Egyptian security service sources tell the news agency Reuters.
The hope is that the ceasefire would be put into effect before March 10, when the Muslim holy month of fasting begins.
This time wish was voiced by the President of the United States on Friday Joe Biden and on Saturday the foreign minister of the Palestinian Authority operating in the West Bank Riyad al-Maliki. Israel and Hamas have not publicly commented on the target in question.
According to Reuters’ sources, in the negotiations, the parties have already agreed on the duration of the ceasefire and the exchange of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners.
Instead, an agreement has not yet been reached on Israel’s withdrawal from northern Gaza and the return of Palestinians to their homes there.
The Palestinian official interviewed by the news agency did not yet confirm the completion of the Cairo negotiations on Sunday.
Civilian deaths in the background of the negotiations
More than a hundred Palestinians who were waiting for food aid died on Thursday in northern Gaza. Gaza authorities accuse Israeli forces of shooting civilians. Israel, on the other hand, says the victims were trampled in the crowd after its forces fired warning shots.
According to the UN, a large proportion of people injured in the situation have injuries caused by bullets. A global investigation is required into what happened.
According to Egyptian sources, Thursday’s events have not slowed down the negotiations but, on the contrary, have increased the pressure on the negotiators to lock in a ceasefire agreement as soon as possible.
President Joe Biden described the deaths of people waiting in line for food aid as “heartbreaking” and announced that the United States was airdropping food aid to Gaza – although he confused Gaza with Ukraine when talking about it.
Biden said that in addition to the United States demanding that Israel arrange transport routes by land for hundreds of aid trucks, so that the starving people of Gaza can get food.
– We do not accept any excuses. Gaza is currently not receiving nearly enough aid, Biden said.
Sources: Reuters, AFP