BICOM

Egyptian officials reportedly began separate talks yesterday with Israeli officials and representatives of Hamas in Cairo, in order to finalise the details of a truce agreed between the two sides last week.

Egyptian mediation helped to bring an to the eight-day long Operation Pillar of Defence, with the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas stipulating that issues such as border movement and transfer of goods would be dealt with “after 24 hours.”

According to Reuters, an Egyptian official said that talks will include discussions over the opening of more Israeli crossings into Gaza. Following Hamas’ violent seizure of power in the Gaza Strip in 2007, Israel placed restrictions on the flow of goods into Gaza, though these restrictions were eased substantially in 2010. Hamas is also asking wants to fully open its crossing with the Gaza Strip.

The issue of border arrangements is also set to be discussed. The Israeli army shot a Palestinian man on Friday who entered an Israeli declared ‘no go’ area along the Gaza border. Since then, Hamas have deployed police along the border fence. Palestinian farmers have been permitted to tend their land adjacent to the border while Israel has also relaxed restrictions on Gaza fishermen, who can now head further away from the coast.

While talks continue in Cairo, a large protest is expected in the city today against the recent assumption of powers by the country’s president Mohammed Morsi, which would prevent the Egyptian courts from overturning any of the decisions which he has made since coming to power in June. Although Morsi yesterday met with members of the judiciary to assure them that the decrees will only apply until the adoption of a new constitution, his actions have been condemned by many as dictatorial and have sparked protests. It is unclear if the unrest will have any impact on the talks to finalise the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.