Israel downplays reports of progress in truce talks as Hamas delegation arrives in Cairo

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Summary:

• A Hamas delegation arrived Saturday in Egypt for the latest round of talks on a Gaza ceasefire. Al-Qahera News, linked to Egyptian intelligence services, quoted an unnamed high-ranking source as saying that “significant progress in the negotiations” had been made between the Palestinian militant group and Israel.

• A top Israeli official on Saturday seemed to downplay the reports of progress in the negotiations, saying that Israel will send a delegation to Cairo for talks on a Gaza truce only if it sees "positive movement" on a framework for a hostage deal. "What we are looking at is an agreement over a framework for a possible hostage deal," the official told AFP on condition of anonymity.

• At least 34,654 Palestinians have been killed and an estimated 77,908 have been wounded in Israel’s military offensive in Gaza, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory. Some 1,170 people were killed in the Hamas-led October 7 attacks and 250 people were taken hostage, according to Israeli figures, with 132 still missing.

Yesterday's key developments:

• A top UN official said Friday that hard-hit northern Gaza was now in “full-blown famine” after more than six months of war between Israel and Hamas and severe Israeli restrictions on food deliveries to the Palestinian territory.

• An Israeli military offensive in Rafah "could be a slaughter of civilians and an incredible blow to the humanitarian operation in the entire (Gaza) strip", UN spokesperson Jens Laerke said on Friday. 
• French police on Friday evacuated students at Paris's Sciences Po university who were staging a sit-in to protest the war in Gaza.

• President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday said Turkey’s move to halt trade with Israel was aimed at forcing the country to a ceasefire over Gaza and increasing the amount of humanitarian aid entering the besieged enclave.

• Police in the US have arrested more than 2,300 people during pro-Palestinian protests at college campuses across the country in recent weeks, sometimes using riot gear, tactical vehicles and flash-bang devices.

(FRANCE 24 with AFP, Reuters, AP)