The envoys from US President Donald Trump’s “Board of Peace” have met representatives of Hamas in Cairo in an effort to safeguard the Gaza ceasefire, under serious strain since the United States and Israel began bombing Iran, three sources told Reuters.
The weekend meeting is the first publicly reported since the start of the Iran war between Hamas and the board, a new international body personally headed by Trump, which has been tasked with overseeing post-war Gaza.
Following the meeting, Israel announced on Sunday that it would soon reopen the sole crossing for pedestrians between Gaza and Egypt, shut since the Iran bombing campaign began. One of the sources said he believed the Israeli announcement was a direct result of the meeting between Hamas and the board.
Prior to the war in Iran, Trump’s plan for Gaza was his flagship initiative for the Middle East.
The sources said the Hamas representatives warned the board that they could back away from its previous promises under the Gaza ceasefire if Israel maintains new restrictions on Gaza imposed during the Iran war.
Israel shut Gaza’s borders after the war’s launch on February 28, saying crossings could not be operated safely. It later resumed the limited flow of goods and aid but kept shut the sole crossing for pedestrians into Egypt, at Rafah on Gaza’s southern edge. On Sunday, it announced it would reopen the crossing later this week following a “security assessment”.
Reuters has previously reported that talks on the disarmament of Hamas — meant to be a focus of the next phase of Trump’s plan — have been on hold since the start of the Iran war.
