Hamas seeks guarantees on pullout

Hamas is demanding "real guarantees" that the conflict in Gaza would end permanently as delegates from the United States, Qatar and Turkiye were due to join negotiators in southern Egypt on Wednesday for a third day of talks.

Hamas' top negotiator, Khalil al-Hayya, said his group wants "real guarantees from President (Donald) Trump and the sponsor countries that the war will end once and for all".It appeared to be his first public appearance since he survived an Israeli strike targeting him and other top Hamas leaders in Doha last month.

In a statement on Wednesday, Hamas said the mediators "are making great efforts to remove any obstacles to the implementation of the ceasefire", noting that "a spirit of optimism prevails among all".

Taher al-Nunu, the media adviser to the head of Hamas' political bureau, said the negotiations focused on "mechanisms for implementing the end of the war, the withdrawal of the occupation forces from the Gaza Strip, and the exchange of prisoners between the two sides".

"The lists of prisoners required to be released were exchanged according to the agreed-upon criteria and numbers," he said.

"Indirect negotiations are continuing with the participation of all parties and mediators."

In a Tuesday meeting, Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa affirmed the government's readiness to implement immediate and urgent interventions as soon as the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip ends as he stressed the importance of joint work with international partners in emergency response, restoring essential services, and providing immediate relief in preparation for launching comprehensive reconstruction efforts.

Trump's 20-point plan calls for a ceasefire, the release of all the hostages, Hamas' disarmament and a phased Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, prompting resumption of indirect talks since Monday.

However, Al-Hayya said the group did "not trust the (Israeli) occupation", according to Egyptian state-linked Al Qahera News. Israel "continues its killing and destruction and repeatedly breaks its promises regarding halting aggression", he said, urging "international guarantees to ensure a final and comprehensive end to the conflict".

Senior Hamas official Fawzi Barhoum said Trump's proposal is vague regarding the exit of Israeli troops, offering no specific timeline for the staged rollout, which would only happen after Hamas returns the 48 Israeli captives it still holds.

Meanwhile, Qatar's Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, Turkish National Intelligence Organization Director Ibrahim Kalin, Trump's special Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner were all due to attend the talks on Wednesday.

Global pressure to end Israeli attacks has escalated as the conflict has claimed the lives of more than 67,000 Palestinians in the past 24 months, caused massive destruction to Gaza's infrastructure and created a catastrophic humanitarian crisis and famine in the besieged enclave of about 2 million people. UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell said any plan must lead to a ceasefire, the release of hostages, and the safe, rapid and unimpeded passage of humanitarian relief — through all available crossings and routes — at the scale desperately needed by all Gazans, especially children.

Demonstrations held

In the United Kingdom, hundreds of students and staff members from universities in London and elsewhere joined protests, defying warnings from Prime Minister Keir Starmer that such demonstrations risk fueling antisemitism.

Coordinated notices from US embassies in Armenia, Belgium, Croatia, Cyprus, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Norway, Spain and Turkiye urged heightened awareness and personal security precautions.

In Japan, hundreds of protesters, including Palestinians, marched through downtown Tokyo demanding a ceasefire in Gaza. Similar protests were held in Osaka and other major cities.

The International Women's Alliance-Asia Pacific, a global alliance of militant grassroots-based women's organizations, gathered more than 60 signatures across the world for the second commemoration of the "Al-Aqsa Flood", saying the genocide "would not be possible without US imperialism".

"The US and its allies are not bystanders but partners, financing and arming Israel with weapons of mass destruction under the rhetoric of 'human rights', in the name of 'peace and security', while shielding Israel from accountability," its sign-on statement said.

"What is happening in Gaza is not an isolated tragedy but part of the broader system of imperialist war and aggression. The same powers that bomb Gaza also expand bases worldwide, wage proxy wars and profit from occupation," they said.

As the indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas were being held in Egypt, Israel's far-right national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir visited the Al-Aqsa compound on Wednesday.

Hamas condemned the visit, calling it a "deliberate provocation" that "violates the sanctity of Al-Aqsa and the feelings of Muslims worldwide".

Xinhua and agencies contributed to this story.

Contact the writers at cuihaipei@chinadaily.com.cn.