Negotiations between Israel and Hamas on the next phase of the Gaza ceasefire began on Thursday (February 27, 2025) in the Egyptian capital, Egypt said, averting a collapse ahead of Saturday’s (March 1, 2025) expiration of the agreement’s first phase.<\/p>\n
Officials from Israel, Qatar and the United States started \u201cintensive discussions\u201d on the ceasefire accord’s second phase in Cairo, Egypts state information service said in a statement.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe mediators are also discussing ways to enhance the delivery of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, as part of efforts to alleviate the suffering of the population and support stability in the region,\u201d it said.<\/p>\n
Phase 2 talks are meant to negotiate an end to the war, including the return of all remaining hostages in Gaza who are alive, and the withdrawal of all Israeli troops from the territory. Return of remaining deceased hostages would happen in Phase 3.<\/p>\n
It will be difficult to reconcile a deal with the war objectives of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has called for dismantling Hamas’ governing and military capabilities. After suffering heavy losses in the war, Hamas has nonetheless emerged intact during the ceasefire, and the group says it will not give up its weapons.<\/p>\n
Hours before talks began, an Israeli official said the country would not withdraw from a strategic corridor in the Gaza Strip as called for under the ceasefire, a refusal that could severely complicate negotiations with Hamas and key mediator Egypt at a sensitive moment for the fragile truce.<\/p>\n
Overnight, Hamas released the remains of four hostages in exchange for over 600 Palestinian prisoners, the last planned swap of the ceasefire’s first phase.<\/p>\n

U.S. President Donald Trump’s Mideast envoy, Steve Witkoff, was expected in the region in the coming days.<\/p>\n
Blatant violation<\/h4>\n
An Israeli official, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with regulations, said the army needed to remain in the so-called Philadelphi corridor, on the Gaza side of the border with Egypt, to prevent weapons smuggling.<\/p>\n
Separately, Defense Minister Israel Katz said at a meeting with local leaders that he had seen tunnels penetrating the border on a recent visit to the corridor, without providing evidence or elaborating on Israel’s plans. Egypt says it destroyed the smuggling tunnels from its side years ago and set up a military buffer zone to halt smuggling.<\/p>\n
Hamas said any Israeli attempt to maintain a buffer zone in the corridor would be a \u201cblatant violation\u201d of the ceasefire agreement. The militant group says that sticking to the agreement is the only way for Israel to secure the release of dozens of hostages still held in Gaza.<\/p>\n
Israel was supposed to begin withdrawing from the Philadelphi corridor on Saturday (March 1, 2025), the last day of the first phase, and complete it within eight days. There was no immediate comment about the corridor from Egypt, which is opposed to any Israeli presence on the Gaza side of its border.<\/p>\n
