Islamic Jihad delegation arrives in Egypt for Gaza ceasefire talks
3 Min Read
A senior Islamic Jihad delegation arrived in Egypt for indirect talks on halting the Israeli aggression on Gaza and ensuring humanitarian aid access to the Strip.
-
Smoke rises following an Israeli military strike in Gaza City as seen from the central Gaza Strip, Wednesday, October 8, 2025 (AP)
The Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement announced late Wednesday that a senior delegation has arrived in the Egyptian city of Sharm el-Sheikh to participate in the ongoing indirect negotiations aimed at securing a ceasefire in the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip.
In a statement issued by its media office, the movement said the delegation will hold discussions with Egyptian mediators and other involved parties on key issues, foremost among them halting the aggression, ensuring the complete withdrawal of the Israeli occupation army from Gaza, and reaching a prisoner exchange agreement.
The talks will also address the urgent need to guarantee the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza, which has been suffering catastrophic conditions under the ongoing siege and relentless bombardment.
Part of broader Palestinian efforts
According to the statement, the arrival of the Islamic Jihad delegation forms part of the wider political efforts led by Palestinian factions to reach a comprehensive deal that would bring an end to the war and secure immediate humanitarian commitments for the besieged population.
The movement reaffirmed that its participation in the talks is guided by the national goal of achieving justice for the Palestinian people, ensuring the protection of civilians, and holding the Israeli occupation accountable for its crimes in Gaza.
Ziyad al-Nakhalah, Secretary-General of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) movement, said earlier on Wednesday that the Resistance is prepared to enter negotiations since “there are clauses that can be dealt with positively.”
Speaking in an address aired by Al Mayadeen Media Network on the second anniversary of Operation Al Aqsa Flood, al-Nakhalah stressed that the Palestinian Resistance is engaged in a ferocious negotiating battle while fighting on the battlefield.
"We are fighting the harshest battle and we will not surrender,” he declared, framing military and diplomatic resistance as essential to success in the current phase.
Conditional openness, prisoner exchange first
Al-Nakhalah made it clear that the Resistance's readiness to negotiate is limited and conditional. He said the movement “expressed readiness to negotiate on the basis that there are clauses that can be dealt with positively, the first of which is the prisoner-exchange clause,” underlining prisoners as the primary bargaining chip and humanitarian priority.
He reiterated the movement’s continued commitment to securing an exchange that meets agreed criteria and preserves the Resistance’s leverage.
“Hamas and the Resistance factions insist that captives will only be freed under a committed, enforceable deal that ends the war,” he emphasized.
Read more: Indirect talks for a ceasefire in Gaza begin in Sharm El-Sheikh
