Final draft of Gaza truce deal presented to sides after “breakthrough”, official says
Doha, Qatar/Cairo, Egypt Reuters Mediators gave Israel and Hamas a final draft of a deal on Monday to end the war in Gaza, an official briefed on the negotiations said, after a midnight “breakthrough” in talks attended by envoys of both outgoing US President Joe Biden and President-elect Donald Trump. Biden said a ceasefire and […]
Biden calls for immediate ceasefire in call with Netanyahu, White House says
Washington DC, US Reuters US President Joe Biden spoke on Sunday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the White House said, as US officials race to reach a Gaza hostage and ceasefire deal before Biden leaves office on 20th January. Biden and Netanyahu discussed efforts underway to reach a deal to halt the fighting in […]
Israel “more optimistic” on prospects of Gaza hostage deal
Jerusalem/Cairo, Egypt Reuters Israel is now more optimistic about a possible hostage deal in Gaza, Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said on Monday, amid reports that Hamas had asked for lists of all hostages still held by militant groups in the Palestinian enclave. He said indirect negotiations were under way about the return of about 100 […]
Israeli airstrikes kill at least 31 people in Gaza, medics say
Cairo, Egypt Reuters Israeli airstrikes killed at least 31 people in the Gaza Strip on Sunday, Palestinian medics said, with nearly half of the deaths in northern areas where the army has waged a month-long campaign it says aims to prevent Hamas regrouping. Palestinians said the new aerial and ground offensives and forced evacuations were […]
Rockets from Lebanon wound 11 in Israel
Tira, Israel Reuters Rockets fired from Lebanon wounded 11 people in central Israel on Saturday, Israeli emergency services said, after one of them hit a house, as prospects for a ceasefire dimmed. Fighting has escalated between Israeli forces and the Lebanese Hezbollah group since September, and hopes that a US push this week for a […]
Egypt proposes initial two-day truce in Gaza with limited hostage-prisoner exchange
Cairo, Egypt Reuters Egypt has proposed an initial two-day ceasefire in Gaza to exchange four Israeli hostages of Hamas for some Palestinian prisoners, Egypt’s President said on Sunday as Israeli military strikes killed 45 Palestinians across the enclave. Egyptian leader Abdel Fattah al-Sisi made the announcement as efforts to defuse the devastating, more than year-long […]
US warns against long Israeli campaign in Lebanon, Gaza ceasefire efforts back on
Doha. Qatar/Beirut, Lebanon/Paris, France Reuters The United States does not want a protracted Israeli campaign in Lebanon, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Thursday, as efforts got underway to hold fresh talks over a ceasefire and hostage deal in Gaza. A month into Israel’s military onslaught against the Iranian-backed Lebanese group Hezbollah, Blinken […]
Blinken heads to Middle East for new ceasefire push as Israel strikes Beirut
Washington DC, US/Beirut, Lebanon Reuters US Secretary of State Antony Blinken headed to the Middle East on Monday to launch another push for an elusive ceasefire, seeking to revive negotiations to end the Gaza war and defuse the spillover conflict in Lebanon. Blinken’s trip to the region is his 11th since the attack on Israel […]
G7 reassures Ukraine on NATO bid, frets over threat to UN in Lebanon
Naples, Italy Reuters Defence ministers of the G7 wealthy democracies on Saturday backed Ukraine’s “irreversible” path to NATO membership and expressed concern over threats to United Nations peacekeepers targeted by Israel in Lebanon. The first ever gathering of G7 defence ministers took place as Israel and Lebanese armed group Hezbollah exchanged fire, with one drone […]
Hezbollah says it will cause Israel pain but also calls for ceasefire
Geneva, Switzerland/Beirut, Lebanon, Reuters Hezbollah’s deputy chief Naim Qassem said on Tuesday the Iran-backed group would inflict “pain” on Israel but he also called for a ceasefire as a conflict rages between them in south Lebanon. Israel has been turning up the heat on Hezbollah since it began incursions into the region after killing Hezbollah […]