U.S. Middle East envoy Brett McGurk is in Cairo and will travel in the region for “active” discussions on ensuring the a prisoner swap deal between the Palestinian resistance and the Zionist enemy with a long ceasefire, the White House said on Tuesday.
White House spokesperson John Kirby said the U.S. would support a longer humanitarian pause in combat in Gaza to ensure hostages could be released and aid brought in.
“The conversations are very sober and serious about trying to get another hostage deal in place,” Kirby told a regular White House briefing, adding the talks included discussion on how long of a pause would be needed to get the hostages out.
‘Israel’ suffered its worst day of losses in Gaza, with 24 soldiers killed in the southern city of Khan Younis.
Qatar, asked about media reports that a ceasefire deal was being discussed, said mediation efforts were ongoing.
“It was a terrible, terrible day for the Israeli army yesterday. That’s an enormous amount of troops lost in one day,” Kirby said.
Source: Al-Manar English Website and Reuters
