INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Hamas negotiators will remain in Cairo for another day at the request of mediators, keeping ceasefire talks going after two days with no
breakthrough, an official from Hamas said on Tuesday.The Cairo talks have been billed as a final hurdle to reach the first extended
ceasefire in the war between Hamas and Israel- a 40-day truce during which Israeli hostages would be freed and aid pumped into Gaza & ahead
of Ramadan, which is due to begin at the start of next week.&The delegation will remain in Cairo on Tuesday for more talks, they are
expected to wrap up this round later today,& a Hamas official told Reuters
Egypt&s Qahera television also reported the talks had been extended for a third day, but said they were &facing difficulties&.Earlier,
senior Hamas official Bassem Naim told Reuters the group had presented its proposal for a ceasefire agreement to the mediators, and was now
waiting for a response from the Israelis, who have stayed away from this round.&(Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu doesn&t want to reach an
agreement and the ball now is in the Americans& court& to press him for a deal, Naim said.A senior Israeli official, asked about Naim&s
comments that Israel was holding up the deal, said: &The claim is incorrect
Israel is making every effort to reach an agreement
We are awaiting a response from Hamas.&Israel has declined to comment publicly on the talks in Cairo.A source told Reuters earlier that
Israel was staying away because Hamas had rejected its demand to furnish a list of all hostages who are still alive
Naim said this was impossible without a ceasefire first as hostages were scattered across the war zone and held by separate groups.Egyptian
security sources said on Monday they were still in touch with the Israelis to allow the negotiations to continue without an Israeli
delegation present.Washington, which is both Israel&s closest ally and a sponsor of the ceasefire talks, has said an Israeli-approved deal
is already on the table and it is up to Hamas to accept it
Hamas disputes this account as an attempt to deflect blame from Israel if the talks collapse with no deal.The United States has also called
on Israel to do more to alleviate the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza, where more than 30,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israel&s
assault, launched after Hamas attacks that killed 1,200 people in October
& ReutersThe post Gaza ceasefire talks extended in Cairo for another day, Hamas says first appeared on Ariana News.
