Talks between Egypt, Israel spy chiefs end with no progress on Gaza ceasefire

Talks in Cairo between Egyptian intelligence chief Abbas Kamel and the head of Israel’s Shin Bet internal security agency, Ronen Bar, over a possible ceasefire in Gaza ended with little progress on Monday.

Ceasefire talks have been stalled since August and this week marked the first visit by a senior Israeli official to Egypt since then.

Israel has intensified its brutal assault on northern Gaza recently, killing dozens of people every day in an attempt to create a “closed military zone” in the area and force out the remaining civilians. At least 42,289 people have been killed by Israel in Gaza since October 2023.

Kamel and Bar reportedly discussed the potential deployment of Arab or international troops on the Philadelphi corridor that separates Gaza from Egypt and at the Netzarim junction in the centre of the devastated territory, according to The New Arab’s Arabic sister site Al-Araby Al-Jadeed.

The Israeli media outlet Walla also said that they discussed ways to re-engage Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, who has been out of contact for several weeks, and restart negotiations for a ceasefire, which stalled largely over Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s insistence on keeping Israeli troops at the Philadelphi corridor and Netzarim permanently.

The talks made little headway however, with Egyptian sources telling Al-Araby Al-Jadeed that they do not expect any real progress until after US presidential elections next month.

Al-Araby Al-Jadeed also reported that the Israeli Shabak chief asked Egypt to pass on a message to Iran regarding the recent escalation between Iran and Israel.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi is expected to visit Egypt in the next few days, according to Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, amid a recent warming of ties between Cairo and Tehran.