Hamas chief in Egypt for talks on Gaza truce and hostage release

Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh's visit to Cairo comes as hopes grow for a truce and hostage release deal between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza war.

The leader of Hamas travelled to Egypt on December 20 as hopes grew that Israel and the Palestinian militant group may be inching toward another truce and hostage release deal in the Gaza war.

The Qatar-based Hamas chief, Ismail Haniyeh, arrived in Cairo for discussions on the "aggression in the Gaza Strip and other matters", the group said in a statement.

He was due to meet Egypt's spy chief for talks on "stopping the aggression and the war to prepare an agreement for the release of prisoners", a source close to the group told AFP.

Haniyeh — who earlier met Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian in Qatar — was heading a "high-level delegation" to Egypt, a frequent mediator between Israel and the Palestinians, the source said.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had told hostage families late on December 19 that he had twice sent his spy chief to Europe in efforts intended to "free our hostages".

"It's our duty, I'm responsible for the release of all the hostages," the premier told the relatives of some of the 129 captives still believed to be held in Gaza.

“Saving them is a supreme task.”