Egypt invites Israel, Hamas, Palestinian Authority for talks ‘seeking a long-term truce’

Egypt has invited Israel, Hamas and the Palestinian Authority for separate talks that aim at consolidating the cease-fire that ended an 11-day war between Israel and the Gaza Strip’s militant Hamas rulers, an Egyptian intelligence official said Thursday. The talks would also focus on accelerating the reconstruction process in Gaza.

The 11-day war killed more than 250 people, mostly Palestinians, and caused heavy destruction in the impoverished coastal territory. Preliminary estimates have put the damage in the hundreds of millions of dollars. Egypt was key in mediating a deal between the two sides.    Fox News contributor Karl Rove on progressives pressuring President Biden on support for Israel. He said the talks could start as early as next week, and that Israel has given their initial approval, but that a final agenda is still in the works. He said that there are talks about a possible release of Palestinian prisoners in Israel in return for Israelis held by Hamas. Both issues were discussed with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken during his visit yesterday, and with the Qatari Foreign Minister who was in Cairo on Tuesday.