Report: Hamas, Egypt reject ceasefire with IDF on Philadelphi Corridor
Egypt does not rely on the US to resolve the issue because it believes the Americans are acting solely for political reasons, and refuse to exert pressure on Netanyahu
Hamas and Egypt have agreed not to accept the possibility of the IDF's presence at the Philadelphi Corridor, according to the Qatari Al-Araby Al-Jadeed on Wednesday. This comes ahead of US Secretary of State Antony Blinken visiting Egypt, where he is expected to submit a US proposal for an Israel-Hamas ceasefire. One of the goals is resolving the dispute over the Philadelphi Corridor, which the Israeli position sees as vital to ensure no weapons enter Hamas hands.
The axis serves as a buffer between the Gaza Strip's southern city of Rafah and the Egyptian border, through which Hamas and other terrorist organizations have smuggled weapons and munitions.
Both Israel and Gazan terrorist groups have stood their ground regarding the Philadelphi corridor, which has become one of the main remaining issues in the talks. Hamas and others categorically reject any Israeli presence after a ceasefire begins.
Egypt, the report said, does not believe the US is exerting enough pressure on Israel to accept a ceasefire, with leaks from US officials suggest the current proposal does not stipulate IDF withdrawal from the Philadelphi Corridor.
Cairo will reportedly remain steadfast on this demand, even if the US uses aid to Egypt as a carrot to convince it to accept Israeli forces on the buffer zone. The Egyptian proposal is that Western supervision, Palestinian Authority deployment, or technological surveillance of the Philadelphi Corridor can sufficiently answer Israel's security needs.