Israel warned on Sunday it would not countenance any long-term truce deal that did not answer its security needs as Gaza cease-fire talks resumed in Cairo. Egyptian-brokered indirect negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians are taking place during a five-day lull in the fighting which is due to expire at midnight (2100 GMT) on Monday.
The aim is to broker a long-term arrangement to halt over a month of bloody fighting which erupted on July 8 and has so far claimed 1,980 Palestinians lives and 67 on the Israeli side.
But as the Israeli team landed in Cairo, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said they would not agree to any proposal which did not offer a clear answer to Israel's security needs. "The Israeli delegation in Cairo is acting with a very clear mandate to stand firmly on Israel's security needs," said Netanyahu.
"Only if there is a clear answer to Israel's security needs, only then will we agree to reach an understanding."
The talks began on Sunday afternoon at the headquarters of the Egyptian intelligence in the absence of four officials from Gaza, among them representatives of Hamas and Islamic Jihad, who were expected to arrive during the evening. It was the first time they had sat down since Wednesday after the negotiators returned home for three-days of consultations with their respective political masters.
Cairo airport sources said the Israeli delegation arrived mid-morning from Tel Aviv, and a Palestinian delegation from Ramallah flew in around the same time via Amman. Hamas's exiled deputy leader Mussa Abu Marzuk arrived from Doha.