Hamas leader heads to Cairo for Gaza talks ahead of Kushner visit

What the report says

Hamas political leader and chief negotiator Khalil al-Hayya is due to travel to Cairo for talks with Egyptian officials, according to Al Jazeera, as diplomacy around Gaza continues to shift. A Hamas source said al-Hayya is expected to meet Egyptian intelligence chief Hassan Rashad on Sunday morning. The trip would be his first visit to Egypt since he assumed Hamas leadership in late July.

The reported meeting comes ahead of a planned regional visit by Jared Kushner, the envoy of US President Donald Trump, who is set to travel to Israel and Egypt next week. Al Jazeera said Kushner’s visit is aimed at narrowing differences over a Gaza plan that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected. Kushner is expected to be joined by Nickolay Mladenov, the Board of Peace’s high representative for Gaza.

Al Jazeera also reported that Hamas is waiting for pressure from mediators and the United States on Netanyahu’s government to accept the roadmap. The article noted that Israeli strikes in Gaza have continued, with the territory’s health authorities saying two Palestinians were killed and 14 wounded in Saturday attacks. More broadly, the piece placed the talks against the backdrop of the ongoing war, the ceasefire framework that took effect in October 2025, and repeated disputes over disarmament and Israeli withdrawal conditions.