Hamas says there's been 'no progress' on second ceasefire phase in indirect talks with Israel

Talks on the second phase of the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas have made no progress so far and it is unclear whether they would resume on Saturday, a senior Hamas official said. 

The first phase of the ceasefire paused fifteen months of fighting in the Gaza Strip and saw the release of 33 hostages in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners. 

Phase one expires on Saturday. However, under the terms of the deal between Israel and Hamas, fighting is not to resume while negotiations on the second phase – which could end the war and return remaining hostages home. 

Negotiations on the second phase have been taking place in Cairo, with Israeli, Qatari, Egyptian and US officials working to bring an end to the war. 

Hamas did not attend the talks, but its position has been represented through Egyptian and Qatari mediators. Basem Naim, a member of Hamas’ politicial bureau, said there had been “no progress” on finding a solution before Israeli negotiators returned home on Friday. 

Naim said he had “no idea” when negotiations might start again. 

Hamas started the war with its Oct. 7 2023 attack that left 1,200 dead in Israel. Since then, Israel’s military offensive has killed more than 48,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza health officials, who do not differentiate between civilian and combatant deaths but say that more than half the dead have been women and children. 

However, a peer-reviewed analysis of deaths in the Gazza war was published in the Lancet - which estimated deaths could have even exceeded 70,000 by October 2024.

Both sides of the conflict agreed to the three-phase ceasefire deal in January, with the aim of bringing an end to the war.