Hamas seeking Marwan Barghouti’s release in Gaza talks, Egypt media reports

Smoke rises from Gaza City, seen from Deir al-Balah, following intense Israeli military attacks, as Palestinians gather at an aid distribution point in the Netzarim area of northern Gaza on October 5. Photo / Getty Images

Hamas is demanding the release of high-profile Palestinian inmate Marwan Barghouti from an Israeli jail as part of ongoing negotiations on a hostage-prisoner exchange, Egyptian state-linked media reported Tuesday.

Al-Qahera News, which is close to Egypt’s intelligence services, said talks had begun in the Egyptian resort town of Sharm El-Sheikh on the lists of Palestinian inmates to be freed by Israel under a potential ceasefire deal.

Barghouti, a leading member of the Palestinian Fatah party and imprisoned since 2002, is a hugely influential figure for the Palestinians.

He is among several high-profile detainees whose release is being sought by Hamas.

Other names mentioned include Ahmad Saadat, Hassan Salameh and Abbas Al-Sayed.

Indirect talks have been under way since in Sharm El-Sheikh as part of a 20-point plan proposed by United States President Donald Trump to secure a ceasefire in Gaza.

The plan includes the release of hostages seized by Hamas and other Palestinian militants in the October 7, 2023, attacks that sparked the Gaza war.

In return for the hostages, Israel is expected to release 250 Palestinian prisoners with life sentences and more than 1700 detainees from Gaza taken during the war.

The plan also includes a phased Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip and the disarmament of Hamas.

On Monday, Hamas said it was ready to reach an agreement to end the war in the Palestinian territory and to carry out an immediate exchange of hostages and prisoners with Israel.

-Agence France-Presse