Egypt hopeful on Gaza talks, waiting for response, foreign minister says
EGYPT is hopeful about a proposal for a truce and the release of hostages in the Gaza Strip but is waiting for a final response on the plan from Israel and Hamas, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said. A Hamas delegation left the Egyptian capital Cairo late on Monday to consult with the group's leadership on the latest, tweaked proposal and was expected to report back within two days, two Egyptian security sources said. Egypt, alarmed by the prospect of an Israeli ground operation in Rafah where more than one million people took shelter near its border, has made a renewed…