By Xinhua,
Cairo : Egyptian Foreign Ministry spokesman Hossam Zaki said Saturday that Israel’s statements on Hamas truce proposal are premature and not final, the official MENA news agency reported.
In an interview with Al-Jazeera news channel, Zaki said the remarks by Israel may not represent the final stance, noting “the true positions will be uncovered during closed-door meetings with Israeli officials later this week.”
Delegations of various Palestinian groups will arrive in Cairo next week to hammer out a unified stance on the proposed truce with Israel, he said.
Egypt is mediating a cease-fire between Israel and the Palestinian militant groups led by Hamas in Gaza Strip.
Meanwhile, Hamas on Saturday played down Israel’s rejection of the movement’s ceasefire vision which was sent by Egyptian mediators to the Israeli government.
Mahmoud Zahar, a Hamas leader who took part in the talks with the Egyptian mediators, said in Gaza that his movement “doesn’t take the (Israeli) official response from the media and it is unconcerned with what is said because we don’t hold a direct dialogue with Israel.”
On Friday, Israel dismissed the proposal by Hamas for a conditional six-month truce in the Gaza Strip, calling it a ruse aimed at allowing the Palestinian group to recover from recent fighting.