The United States and Hamas held direct talks in Cairo as mediators sought to advance a fragile ceasefire brokered in October. Hamas pressed the US to demand that Israel fully implement first-phase commitments — including halting strikes and increasing humanitarian aid — before any move to disarmament. Mediators say talks stalled because they asked Hamas to disarm before Israel met its obligations; Israel denies the claims and has tied implementation to Hamas disarmament. The Palestinian Ministry of Health reports more than 765 deaths in Gaza since the truce.
US Holds First Direct Talks With Hamas Since Gaza Truce — Ceasefire Progress Stalls
People gather around a destroyed Palestinian police jeep that was targeted by an Israeli air strike in Nuseirat refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip on March 22, 2026. - Eyad Baba/AFP/Getty Images
The United States and Hamas held their first direct talks since the Gaza ceasefire, meeting in Cairo as mediators tried to advance a fragile US-brokered agreement, two Hamas sources said. A US delegation led by senior adviser Aryeh Lightstone met chief Hamas negotiator Khalil al-Hayya on Tuesday night. Nickolay Mladenov, the Board of Peace's High Representative for Gaza, accompanied the delegation.
A State Department spokesperson told CNN, “We don’t comment on ongoing negotiations.” According to sources, al-Hayya — who survived an assassination attempt in Doha last year — pressed Lightstone to push Israel to fully implement its first-phase commitments, including an end to strikes and increased delivery of humanitarian aid, before moving to the next phase.
The October truce paused two years of intense fighting but left key questions unresolved about Gaza’s political future and security arrangements. Mediators have focused on the next phase: the disarmament of Hamas, the deployment of an international force to Gaza, and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from portions of the territory.
Multiple sources said talks repeatedly stalled because mediators pressed Hamas to disarm before Israel completed its phase-one obligations. Israel has denied failing to uphold the agreement and, according to sources, has linked full implementation to Hamas accepting disarmament.
“The proposed paper reflects a major imbalance in the ordering of priorities: Israel’s security first, while Palestinians’ humanitarian, political, and administrative rights are postponed,” a senior Hamas source said. The source added that Mladenov has at times relayed Israel’s demands and warned that Israel could return to war if Hamas did not accept disarmament.
According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, Israeli strikes have killed more than 765 people in Gaza since the ceasefire took effect in October. Negotiators and international organizations continue to press for sequencing that pairs security measures with concrete humanitarian and political guarantees.
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