The Media Line: Egypt Races to a Diplomatic Solution While Israel Steps Up the War 

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Egypt Races to a Diplomatic Solution While Israel Steps Up the War
Gaza teacher Mohammed Shaheen says, ‘I believe this is the last chance to reach an agreement that opens the door to a permanent end to the war.’  

 By Waseem Abu Mahadi and Jacob Wirtschafter / The Media Line 

[CAIRO] Egypt forced Hamas into a corner, telling the group bluntly in Cairo that its demand for a comprehensive “end of war” deal was impossible under Israeli conditions. With Washington and Doha already aligned behind a partial arrangement, Egypt made clear there would be no outside cover for Hamas to hold out. 

To drive the point home, Cairo convened Palestinian factions and staged a show of unity. Every group but Hamas backed the partial deal, leaving it isolated in the very room where it once claimed leadership. The Palestinian Reform Stream, backed by exiled Fatah strongman Mohammed Dahlan, went further: Its leader was recorded saying Hamas should accept the deal “even without reading it” because Gaza’s people needed the war to end. State Information Service chief Diaa Rashwan declared that the factions had accepted the text “without objections,” signaling that Egypt considered the matter closed and that Hamas’ political isolation was nearly total. 

Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty stressed the urgency, telling local media that Qatari and Palestinian delegations were “working on Egyptian soil” to apply maximum pressure for a breakthrough. President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi publicly welcomed the deal, called for faster humanitarian relief through Rafah, and reiterated Egypt’s rejection of both Israeli reoccupation and mass Palestinian displacement. 

This is Cairo’s primary concern. Egyptian officials have repeatedly said that mass displacement of Palestinians into Sinai is a non-negotiable “red line.” They argue such a move would erase the Palestinian national cause and destabilize Egypt by upsetting the delicate balance of the peninsula, where northern clans coexist uneasily with the Sawarka, Rumaylat, Tarabin and Tiyaha tribes. North Sinai, spanning some 10,650 square miles, has a population of only 450,000 to 500,000. An influx of even 200,000 Gazans would nearly double El Arish’s size overnight, overwhelming services, inflaming tribal rivalries and threatening Egyptian sovereignty in a region already marked by fragile control. 

Adding to Cairo’s anxiety is what diplomats call the “African dimension.” Israel recently sent medical kits, water systems and hygiene supplies to South Sudan through its development agency MASHAV and the NGO IsraAID, describing the shipment as purely humanitarian. Yet reports of confidential talks about relocating Palestinians there have swirled. Juba has denied them — “These claims are baseless and do not reflect the official position or policy of the Government of the Republic of South Sudan,” its foreign ministry told Reuters — but the idea alone alarms Cairo, which sees any population transfer, whether in Sinai or Africa, as demographic engineering and a breach of its firmest red line. 

That unease is sharpened by Egypt’s deep ties with Juba. Cairo was among the first to recognize South Sudan’s independence in 2011 and has since cultivated close political and security relations. South Sudanese officers train in Egyptian academies, intelligence cooperation has grown as both governments monitor Sudan’s civil war, and Cairo views Juba as a partner in Nile Basin politics and a counterweight to Ethiopia over the Grand Renaissance Dam. Against this backdrop, even speculative talk of resettling Palestinians in South Sudan touches the core of a partnership Egypt considers essential to regional stability and its own security. 

Meanwhile in Gaza, the focus remains squarely on Hamas’ next move. 

“There’s no question that Hamas is under immense pressure,” Mansour Abo Kareem, a Gaza-based political affairs researcher, told The Media Line. “Israel is threatening a deeper invasion of Gaza City, while civil society leaders are urging Hamas to put the people’s interests first, rather than prolonging negotiations as the destruction continues.” 

That pressure is felt most acutely by ordinary Gazans, who see their survival bound up in the outcome of the talks. 

“I believe this may be the last chance to reach an agreement that opens the door to a permanent end to the war,” Mohammed Shaheen, 38, a teacher from Deir al-Balah, told The Media Line. 

“Civilians in Gaza are being killed every day before the eyes of the world. Hamas must put the lives of the Palestinian people above everything else and reconsider its positions in a way that serves the public interest. Staying in the political arena without making concessions — especially on weapons — only benefits Netanyahu and his extremist government, which wants to keep the war going. The priority must be to end the bloodshed and protect civilian lives.” 

The proposal unfolds on two key fronts: a swap and a pullback. Hamas would release half of the Israeli hostages. In return, Israel would free a set number of Palestinian prisoners, including some serving long or life sentences. During the 60-day pause, Israeli troops would pull back from parts of Gaza’s cities and redeploy closer to the border. That partial withdrawal is meant to make it easier for humanitarian groups to work. 

Aid deliveries — fuel, water, medical supplies and equipment to repair hospitals and bakeries — would increase under the supervision of the United Nations, the Ramallah-based Palestinian Red Crescent and other international agencies. While Israel highlights daily aid convoys from Egypt, Arab and Islamic nations call the blockade a “weapon of genocide,” underscoring the gulf between Israeli claims and regional perceptions. 

Yet Hamas’ leadership continues to worry that Netanyahu will restart the war after 60 days unless the United States provides ironclad guarantees. US intermediaries have told Hamas that continued American support depends on two conditions: that Hamas feed and provide medical care for the remaining hostages, and that a new non-Hamas Palestinian governing body be operational in Gaza before the ceasefire expires. Without meeting those terms, Hamas risks losing what little leverage remains. 

Families of the remaining hostages have intensified their protests, pressing the government to take decisive action. Approximately 50 hostages are still believed to be in Gaza, with Israeli officials estimating that about 20 of them are alive. Trump’s envoy, New York developer Steve Witkoff, has been shuttling between Cairo, Doha and European capitals to keep the deal alive. Witkoff has not engaged Hamas directly — messages have been relayed through Qatari and Egyptian mediators and, at times, by Palestinian American academic and former Harvard scholar Bishara Bahbah, who has served as an informal go-between. 

“A temporary truce could open the door to wider discussions — about who governs Gaza, how security is managed and whether the Palestinian Authority or an interim body will take the lead, supported by Arab and international forces,” Abo Kareem told The Media Line. 

Palestinian analyst Mkhaimar Abusada told The Media Line that Hamas has treated hostages as its central bargaining tool. “Netanyahu does not want to end the war now, and that is why the deal now is half the hostages,” he said. Abusada noted that Yahya Sinwar, Hamas’ late Gaza leader, pushed early for a swap to secure the release of jailed militants, but Israel has held firm that any agreement must begin with the return of all hostages. 

That hard line stresses what critics of Hamas also contend — that the group is less focused on ending the conflict than on protecting its own position as an armed Islamist movement. “Ultimately, Hamas is not pushing for a comprehensive settlement,” Abo Kareem told The Media Line. “What it seeks is a partial agreement that buys time, lets it recalibrate its strategy and positions itself for a role in Gaza’s future governance.” 

Israel’s longest-serving prime minister has also flatly rejected renewed calls for a two-state solution after Oct. 7, warning that granting Palestinian statehood now would hand Hamas a “prize” for the massacre and serve as a “platform for our destruction.” That ambiguity lets hard-liners hear “eradication” while security officials mean “dismantle and prevent,” turning “destroy Hamas” into a political horizon instead of a clear finish line. 

Back in Cairo, Hamas negotiator Khalil al-Hayya is bargaining over the basics — who is released first, how far troops pull back, how many aid trucks cross each day. Against that backdrop, Abo Kareem told The Media Line that Israel’s objectives have been consistent since Oct. 7: dismantling Hamas’ rule, neutralizing its military capabilities and reshaping Gaza’s security landscape. 

Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa has begun sketching a transitional role for the Palestinian Authority (PA) in Gaza. He told Sky News Arabia he has set up a six-month technocratic committee to handle basic administration “as soon as conditions permit,” describing it as a bridge for the PA’s return rather than a rival structure. Touring Rafah and El Arish hospitals with Egypt’s foreign minister, Mustafa thanked Egyptian medical teams and argued there is “no justification” for blocking the PA from resuming its responsibilities. 

Yet his technocratic vision collides with Israel’s military calculus. The Israeli army said it was preparing to relocate Palestinians from combat zones to southern Gaza ahead of an offensive on Gaza City. The Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), the Israeli military body that oversees civilian affairs in Gaza and the West Bank, announced that tents and shelter supplies would be brought in through Kerem Shalom with UN coordination. 

It has become a race between Israel’s battlefield timetable and Egypt’s diplomatic calendar. If Cairo secures verifiable troop movements, an immediate aid surge and substantial early releases on both lists, the 60-day pause could open space for broader talks. Egypt is already preparing an international conference on Gaza’s early recovery and reconstruction to convene once a ceasefire is reached. As Rashwan noted, Palestinian factions accepted the plan “without any objections.” The Dahlan-backed Reform Stream drove the point home more bluntly: Hamas had no choice but to bend.