Egyptian intelligence discreetly changed the terms of a ceasefire proposal that Israel had already signed off on earlier this month, according to three sources familiar with the discussions.
The ceasefire agreement announced by Hamas on 6 May was not what the Qataris or the Americans believed had been submitted to Hamas for a potential final review. “We were all duped,” said one of those sources.
The move ultimately sabotaged a deal that could have released Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners and paved the way to temporarily end the fighting in Gaza.
A senior Egyptian intelligence official, Ahmed Abdel Khalek, was responsible for proposing “several alternatives and scenarios”, said one of the sources.
Mr Abdel Khalek is a senior deputy to the Egyptian intelligence head Abbas Kamel, who has been CIA Director Bill Burns’ equal in conducting Egypt’s mediation in the sabotage talks.
The edits came more than a week after a group of Egyptian negotiators flew to Israel in late April to iron out the final details of the ceasefire agreement.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken called the framework “extraordinarily generous on the part of Israel.”
When the Egyptians returned from Israel to negotiate with Hamas, it became clear that the group did not agree with the Israeli’s propositions, said one of the sources. So the Egyptian official made significant changes to ensure that Hamas would also sign the agreement.
The Qataris are expected to play a bigger role in the next round of negotiations, if talks resume. Although Egypt would still hold the central position given their essential proximity to Hamas.
