Posted on 08/22/24
| News Source: JPost
An Israeli team is in Cairo for negotiations on the hostage deal, while the security cabinet met in Tel Aviv and Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed Al Thani is expected to head to Iran early next week.
Thursday’s Cairo talks come amid a stiff debate about Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s firm stance that the IDF must maintain a presence in the Philadelphi Corridor. He has stressed that he will not accept any hostage deal that calls for Israel to withdraw from that corridor. Hamas in turn has insisted Israel must fully withdraw from the corridor.
The Prime Minister’s Office stressed that “Netanyahu insists on the principle that Israel control the Philadelphi Corridor in order to prevent Hamas from rearming itself, which would afford it the capability of repeating the atrocities of October 7.”
It also rejected a report that suggested a resolution to the issue could be a “multi-national force along the Philadelphi Corridor.”
That corridor is considered to be a critical buffer zone between Egypt and Gaza. Any plan for IDF troops to remain in that corridor would need agreement from Egypt.