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The United States and Hamas held direct talks on April 14 for the first time since the ceasefire reached on Oct. 10, 2025, CNN reported, citing two Hamas officials.
According to the report, a U.S. delegation led by Ambassador Aryeh Lightstone, who is responsible for economic normalization issues under President Donald Trump, met in Cairo with Khalil al-Hayya, a member of Hamas’ political bureau and the group’s leader in the Gaza Strip.
The Hamas officials told CNN that Nikolay Mladenov, the high representative of the Gaza Peace Council, accompanied Lightstone during the meeting in the Egyptian capital.
According to the Hamas officials, Hayya pressed Lightstone on the need for Israel to fulfill its commitments under the first phase of the agreement.
They said Hayya argued that Israel must meet those obligations in order to stop the attacks, allow more humanitarian aid into Palestine and move to the next phase.
A senior Hamas official also said there were serious imbalances in the way priorities were being set in the proposal.
According to that official, Israel’s security was being placed at the forefront, while Palestinians’ humanitarian, political and administrative rights were being ignored.
A U.S. official also told CNN that the meeting came a few days after Lightstone had held talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
According to the same official, Lightstone sought a commitment from Netanyahu that Israel would fully implement its obligations under the first phase of the agreement.
At the same time, it was also claimed that Israel would implement those obligations if Hamas committed to disarmament.
Asked by CNN for comment, a U.S. State Department spokesperson said: “We do not comment on ongoing negotiations.”
The report did not say whether the talks in Cairo produced any immediate breakthrough.
Despite the ceasefire reached on Oct. 10, 2025, the Israeli army continues to carry out attacks on Gaza, according to the report.
It added that the number of people killed in Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip since October 2023 has reached 72,344.
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