Page 39 - Gaza

Israeli airstrikes kill dozens in Gaza ahead of high-level ceasefire talks

Multiple Israeli airstrikes killed at least three dozen Palestinians in southern Gaza, health workers said Saturday, as officials including a Hamas delegation gathered for high-level cease-fire talks in neighboring Egypt. Among the dead were 11 members of a family, including two children, after an airstrike hit their home in Khan Younis, according to Nasser Hospital, which received a total of 33 bodies from three strikes in and around the city that also hit tuk-tuks and passersby. Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital said it received three bodies from another strike. The Israeli military said it was looking into the reports. First responders also recovered 16 bodies from the Hamad City area of Khan Younis after a partial pullout of Israeli forces, 10 bodies from a residential block west of Khan Younis and two farther south in Rafah. The circumstances of their deaths were not immediately clear, but the areas were repeatedly bombed by the Israeli military over the past week. An Associated Press

Israel evacuation orders cram Palestinians into shrinking humanitarian zone

Young girls screamed and elbowed each other in a crush of bodies in southern Gaza, trying desperately to reach the front of the food line. Men doled out rice and chicken as fast as they could, platefuls of the nourishment falling to the ground in the tumult. Nearby, boys waited to fill plastic containers with water, standing for hours among tents packed so tightly they nearly touched. Hunger and desperation were palpable Friday in the tent camp along the Deir al-Balah beachfront, after a month of successive evacuation orders that have pressed thousands of Palestinians into the area that the Israeli military calls a humanitarian zone. The zone has long been crowded by Palestinians seeking refuge from bombardment, but the situation grows more dire by the day, as waves of evacuees arrive and food and water grow scarce. Over the last month, the Israeli military has issued evacuation orders for southern Gaza at an unprecedented pace. At least 84 per cent of Gaza now falls within the ...

White House says it is making progress on Gaza ceasefire as talks continue

The White House said on Friday that cease-fire talks in Cairo have been constructive and will continue over the weekend as the US and Mideast allies continue to press Israel and Hamas to forge an agreement. CIA Director William Burns and Brett McGurk, a senior adviser on the Middle East to President Joe Biden, are leading the US side of negotiations that began on Thursday amid major differences between Israel and Hamas over Israel's insistence that it maintain forces in two strategic corridors in Gaza. There has been progress made, White House national security spokesman John Kirby said, We need now for both sides to come together and work towards implementation. Kirby did not detail where progress had been made, but he did insist that there's been momentum in the conversations among the mediators from the US, Israel and Hamas's interlocutors Egypt and Qatar. Diplomatic efforts have redoubled as fears grow of a wider regional war after the recent targeted killings of leaders of the

Israeli strikes kill at least 16 in Gaza, say Palestinian officials

The Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital received the bodies, including the remains of a woman and three children, after strikes overnight and into Thursday. An Associated Press reporter at the hospital counted the bodies. A man held the body of a child wrapped in a white shroud as a woman next to him wept, saying: My love, my soul. The Israeli offensive launched in response to Hamas' October 7 attack has killed over 40,000 Palestinians in Gaza, according to the local Health Ministry, which does not say how many were militants or civilians. Hamas and other militants killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, in the October 7 attack and abducted around 250. Around 110 hostages are still inside Gaza, a third of whom are believed to be dead. The Israeli military says it has killed over 17,000 fighters, without providing evidence. It blames civilian deaths on Hamas because the militants fight in dense, residential areas. The United States, Qatar and Egypt have spent months trying to broker a ...

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Israel-Hamas war: Israeli strikes kill 10 in Gaza, say Palestine officials

Palestinian health officials say Israeli strikes have killed at least 10 people in the Gaza Strip. The Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital received 10 bodies, including the remains of a woman and three children, after strikes overnight and into Thursday. An Associated Press reporter at the hospital counted the bodies. A man held the body of a child wrapped in a white shroud as a woman next to him wept, saying: My love, my soul. The Israeli offensive launched in response to Hamas' October 7 attack has killed over 40,000 Palestinians in Gaza, according to the local Health Ministry, which does not say how many were militants or civilians. Hamas and other militants killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, in the October 7 attack and abducted around 250. Around 110 hostages are still inside Gaza, a third of whom are believed to be dead. The Israeli military says it has killed over 17,000 fighters, without providing evidence. It blames civilian deaths on Hamas because the militants fight in den

American Airlines extends suspension of flights to Israel amid Gaza war

American Airlines is suspending flights to Israel through late March, extending a break in service that started in the early days of the war in Gaza. A spokesperson for the airline said Wednesday that customers with tickets for flights to Tel Aviv can rebook at no extra charge or cancel their trip and get a refund. The airline said flights to Ben Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv will be suspended through March 29. The airline updated a travel advisory on its website over the weekend. We will continue to work closely with our partner airlines to assist customers travelling between Israel and European cities with service to the US, the spokesperson said. Delta Air Lines extended its suspension of Tel Aviv flights through September 30 from August 31. United Airlines has suspended service indefinitely. All three airlines stopped flying to Israel shortly after the October 7 Hamas attack that started the war. Many other international airlines did the same, although some later ..

Egypt skeptical of Gaza cease-fire proposal as more details emerge

Key mediator Egypt expressed scepticism Wednesday about the proposal meant to bridge gaps in cease-fire talks between Israel and Hamas as more details emerged a day before negotiations were expected to resume in Cairo. The challenges around the so-called bridging proposal appeared to undermine the optimism for an imminent agreement that US Secretary of State Antony Blinken carried into his latest Mideast visit this week. Diplomatic efforts have redoubled as fears grow of a wider regional war after the recent targeted killings of leaders of the militant Hamas and Hezbollah groups, both blamed on Israel, and threats of retaliation. President Joe Biden spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday, the White House said, without immediately giving details on what was said. Officials in Egypt, in its unique role as both a mediator and affected party since it borders Gaza, told The Associated Press that Hamas won't agree to the bridging proposal for a number of reason

Israeli tank, drone strikes kill at least 17 in Gaza's Khan Younis

Israeli tank and drone strikes in Gaza on Wednesday killed at least 17 people, according to hospital staff and Associated Press journalists who counted the bodies. The strikes happened in Deir al-Balah in central Gaza and Khan Younis in the south. Lebanon's Hezbollah on Wednesday launched more than 50 rockets, hitting a number of private homes in the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights. Hezbollah said the attack was in response to an Israeli strike deep into Lebanon on Tuesday night. The attacks came a day after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with fellow mediators Egypt and Qatar as he pressed ahead with the latest diplomatic mission to secure a cease-fire in the war in Gaza, even as Hamas and Israel signalled that challenges remain. Diplomatic efforts had redoubled as fears grow of a wider regional war after the recent targeted killings of Hamas and Hezbollah leaders, both blamed on Israel, and threats of retaliation. Meanwhile, key mediator Egypt expressed skepticism Wednesda

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Israeli military retrieves bodies of six hostages from Khan Younis in Gaza

The current war in Gaza began on Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas gunmen stormed into Israeli communities

Antony Blinken visits Gaza mediators in pursuit of ceasefire deal

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was visiting fellow mediators Egypt and Qatar as he pressed ahead Tuesday with the latest diplomatic mission to secure a cease-fire in the war in Gaza, even as Hamas and Israel signalled that challenges remain. Hamas in a new statement called the latest proposal presented to it a reversal of what it agreed to previously and accused the US of acquiescing to what it called new conditions from Israel. There was no immediate US response. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, meanwhile, told relatives of hostages in Gaza that a key goal is to preserve our strategic security assets in the face of great pressures from home and abroad. He noted the capture of a narrow buffer zone along the Gaza-Egypt border that Israel calls the Philadelphi corridor. Neither Hamas nor Egypt wants an Israeli presence there. The meeting came as Israel's military said it recovered the bodies of six hostages taken in Hamas' October 7 attack that started the war, bringi

Israel accepts proposal to bridge impasse, Hamas must do same: Blinken

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Monday that Israel has accepted a proposal to bridge differences holding up a cease-fire and hostage release in Gaza, and he called on Hamas to do the same, without saying whether the latest draft had addressed concerns cited by the militant group. The high-stakes negotiations have gained speed in recent days as diplomats hope an agreement will deter Iran and Lebanon's Hezbollah from avenging the targeted killings of two top militants that were blamed on Israel. The escalating tensions have raised fears of an even more destructive regional war. Blinken spoke after holding a 2 1/2 hour meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu earlier in the day, and will travel to Egypt and Qatar for further negotiations. The three mediators have spent months trying to end the war in Gaza, with the talks repeatedly stalling. In a very constructive meeting with Prime Minister Netanyahu today, he confirmed to me that Israel supports the bridgin

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Israel, Hamas accuse each other for impeding cease-fire & hostage deal

Mediators say the current round of negotiations have brought the two sides closest to an official pause in fighting in months

Blinken to hold Gaza cease-fire talks on 9th Mideast trip since war began

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will use his ninth diplomatic mission to the Middle East since the start of the Israel-Hamas war to press for the quick conclusion of an elusive cease-fire agreement. Blinken arrived in Israel on Sunday before what mediators have billed as a last push to reach a deal that will take place in Cairo later this week. He will meet with top Israeli officials on Monday before travelling to Egypt on Tuesday. Late last week, the three countries mediating the proposed cease-fire reported progress on a deal under which Israel would halt most military operations in Gaza and release a number of Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the release of hostages held by Hamas. A senior official travelling with Blinken said his arrival in the region comes at a critical time in the cease-fire talks and the secretary would press all parties on the importance of concluding it quickly to end civilian suffering in Gaza and prevent the conflict from engulfing the region. T

Israel strikes Gaza as Blinken heads to region to close ceasefire deal

Israeli strikes across Gaza killed 19 people overnight, including a woman and her six children, as U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken headed to the region on Sunday to try to seal a cease-fire deal after months of contentious negotiations. The U.S. and fellow mediators Egypt and Qatar appeared to be closing in on a deal after two days of talks in Doha, with American and Israeli officials expressing cautious optimism. But Hamas has signaled resistance to what it says are new demands by Israel, and the long-running talks have repeatedly stalled. The evolving proposal calls for a three-phase process in which Hamas would release all hostages abducted during its Oct. 7 attack, which triggered the deadliest war ever fought between Israelis and Palestinians. In exchange, Israel would withdraw its forces from Gaza and release Palestinian prisoners. The mediators hope to end a war that has killed over 40,000 Palestinians, according to local health authorities, displaced the vast majority

Israeli GDP grows at 1.2% in April-June period as Gaza war rages on

First-quarter GDP was revised to 17.3% annualised from a prior estimate of 14.4%, bouncing back from a contraction of 20.6% in the fourth quarter of 2023

Activists to call for Gaza truce during Democratic convention in Chicago

Thousands of activists are expected to converge on Chicago this week for the Democratic National Convention, hoping to call attention to abortion rights, economic injustice and the war in Gaza. While Vice President Kamala Harris has energized crowds of supporters as she prepares to accept the Democratic nomination, progressive activists maintain their mission remains the same. Activists say they learned lessons from last month's Republican National Convention in Milwaukee and are predicting bigger crowds and more robust demonstrations in Chicago, a city with deep social activism roots. Who is protesting? Demonstrations are expected every day of the convention and, while their agendas vary, many activists agree an immediate ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war is the priority. Things are set to kick off Sunday on the convention's eve with an abortion rights march along iconic Michigan Avenue. Organizer Linda Loew said even though Democrats have pushed to safeguard reproductive rights

Deadly violence persists in Gaza despite mediators calling for a truce

As mediators expressed optimism for an imminent cease-fire deal, violence raged on Saturday in the Gaza Strip, where an Israeli airstrike killed at least 18 people, all from the same family. The attack came days after the Health Ministry in Hamas-run Gaza announced the death toll surpassed 40,000 in the 10-month-old Israel-Hamas war, and just hours after officials from the United States, Egypt and Qatar wrapped up two days of cease-fire talks with a message of hope that a deal could be reached. A joint statement from the three mediators said a proposal to bridge the gaps between Israel and Hamas was presented and they expected to work out the details of how to implement the possible deal next week in Cairo. The mediation efforts were aimed not just at securing the release of scores of Israeli hostages and stopping the fighting that has devastated Gaza, where aid and health workers fear a possible polio outbreak. It is also aimed at tamping down regional tensions that have threatened