CIA Director William Burns arrived in the Egyptian capital Cairo on Friday for meetings about the conflict in Gaza, an Egyptian security source and three sources at Cairo airport said.
Egypt, along with Qatar and the United States, has been leading efforts to mediate between Israel and Hamas to broker a deal for a ceasefire and hostage release in Gaza.
The CIA declined to comment, reflecting its policy of not disclosing the director's travel.
Egypt made a renewed push to revive negotiations late last month. Cairo is alarmed by the prospect of an Israeli ground operation against Hamas in Rafah in southern Gaza, where more than one million people have taken shelter near the border with Egypt's Sinai Peninsula.
Mediators say they have been waiting on Hamas to deliver its response on the latest version of a proposal for a truce and for the release of Israeli hostages held in Gaza.