How about now? Gaza truce talks intensify after months of impasse

The Debate

For the first time since November, could there finally be a respite in Gaza? As warring parties and negotatiors shuttle through Cairo, we try to see through the smokescreens and the mixed messages if the stars are truly aligning. Beyond a swap of Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners, it's tough at face value to comprehend indirect talks between two sides whose official line is the elimination of the other. The US Secretary of State has hinted at a grand bargain from which a truce graduates into a full-blown rewrite of 75 years of Israeli-Palestinian relations.

The first step would be a ceasefire. And as interested third parties like the US and Egypt feel the pressure over a war that's in its seventh month, what do they need to do to help get a deal over the line?

Produced by Alessandro Xenos, Guillaume Gougeon and Imen Mellaz.