Netanyahu held talks with Sisi in Egypt over Gaza – Israeli minister

Israel’s finance minister has confirmed that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in Egypt in May to discuss a long-term ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. Asked on Israeli Army Radio on Tuesday whether he had known of the meeting, Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon replied “Yes.” He added that “everything that will happen in Gaza will be done with Egyptian mediation and involvement.” A spokesman for Netanyahu had declined to comment on the meeting after it was first reported on Monday, Reuters said. According to Israel’s Channel Ten News, the two leaders discussed the easing of an Israeli-Egyptian blockade of Gaza, rehabilitation of its infrastructure and terms for a ceasefire. Egypt and the UN have been trying to mediate a long-term truce between Israel and Hamas, the Islamist group that rules Gaza, following a spike in cross-border violence in the past few months.