GAZA CITY, Palestinian Territories, June 1, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - A Hamas 
delegation is due to meet with mediators in Egypt on Wednesday to discuss 
ways of advancing the fragile Gaza ceasefire, officials from the Palestinian 
Islamist movement told AFP.

The Palestinian territory remains gripped by daily violence, with the Israeli 
military and Hamas accusing one another of violating the truce in effect 
since October.

A transition to the second phase of the ceasefire, which was supposed to 
involve Hamas's disarmament and a gradual withdrawal of the Israeli army, has 
been stalled for months.

"Egypt has invited Hamas and other factions to participate in talks with 
mediators on Wednesday... which will also include Qatari and Turkish 
officials," a Hamas official said, declining to be identified as he was not 
authorised to speak publicly on the matter.

"The mediators have presented ideas for formulating a new, revised proposal 
acceptable to both Hamas and Israel."

The official said the Hamas delegation, headed by chief negotiator Khalil al-
Hayya, as well as representatives from other Palestinian factions, was 
expected to arrive in Cairo starting Tuesday for the talks to be held in the 
Mediterranean town of El-Alamein.

"Hamas believes a breakthrough and progress are possible if Israel does not 
create new obstacles and if there is a genuine Israeli will to reach a 
solution," the official added.

One of the key sticking points to advancing the ceasefire negotiations has 
been the issue of Hamas's disarmament.

"The resistance factions will not accept disarmament under conditions imposed 
by the occupation," a second Hamas official told AFP.

Hamas has repeatedly said it is not opposed to handing over some of its 
arsenal, but only as part of a Palestinian political process.

Last week, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he had ordered the 
military to take control of 70 percent of the Gaza Strip, in defiance of the 
ceasefire's terms.

Hamas at the time accused Netanyahu of a "blatant violation", condemning the 
"complete silence" of US President Donald Trump's Board of Peace and its high 
representative for Gaza, Nickolay Mladenov.

The second Hamas official on Monday said mediators were planning a meeting 
between the group and Mladenov in Egypt, where discussions would focus on 
reconstruction efforts and handing over administration of the Palestinian 
territory to the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza.

The 15-member technocratic committee was formed to handle day-to-day 
governance under the supervision of the Board of Peace, but it has not yet 
been able to enter the territory.

Violence, meanwhile, continues to rock Gaza.

Israel has killed at least 932 people since the ceasefire began, according to 
Gaza's health ministry, which operates under Hamas authority and whose 
figures are considered reliable by the United Nations.

The Israeli military says it has lost five soldiers in Gaza over the same 
period.