Gaza mediators and Israeli intelligence chief meet in Rome

Egyptian, Qatari and American mediators will meet Israeli negotiators in the Italian capital on Sunday in a latest effort to broker a truce in Gaza, Egyptian state media reported.

“A four-way meeting between Egyptian officials and their American and Qatari counterparts, in the presence of the head of Israeli intelligence, will be held in Rome on Sunday to reach an agreement on a truce in Gaza,” the Al-Qahera news agency, which has links to Egyptian intelligence, reported on Friday, citing an unnamed “senior official.”

Egypt, alongside Qatar and the United States, has been involved for more than nine months in mediation efforts aimed at ending Israel’s war on the Gaza Strip.

The proposed truce deal would be tied to the release of prisoners held in Gaza in exchange for Palestinian prisoners held in Israel.

American news media Axios It was separately reported that CIA Director Bill Burns is expected to discuss the issue in Rome on Sunday with Israeli, Qatari and Egyptian officials.

The official quoted by Al-Qahera News said Egypt insists on “an immediate ceasefire” as part of the deal, which should also “ensure the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza” and “safeguard the freedom of movement” of civilians in the Palestinian territory.

Cairo would also like to see a “complete (Israeli) withdrawal from the Rafah crossing” linking Gaza to Egypt, the official added.

Recent mediation efforts have focused on a framework presented by US President Joe Biden in late May, calling it an Israeli proposal.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed Congress on Thursday, pleading for continued U.S. support, before meeting with Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.

Harris, the presumptive Democratic nominee for the US presidential election later this year, said after the meeting that she would not remain “silent” about the suffering in Gaza and that it was time to end the “devastating” conflict.

The Gaza war began after Hamas attacked southern Israel on October 7. Of the 251 people captured that day, more than 100 are still being held in the Gaza Strip, 39 of whom the army says are dead.

Israel’s war on Gaza has killed at least 39,175 Palestinians, according to the Health Ministry, which does not provide details on civilian and militant deaths.