Page 61 - Gaza

Hamas proposes three-stage ceasefire over 135 days, leading to end of war

According to a draft document seen by Reuters, the Hamas counterproposal envisions three phases lasting 45 days each

Still seek complete ceasefire in Gaza, end to Israeli offensive, says Hamas

Hamas says it has responded in a positive spirit to the latest proposal from the US and Mideast mediators for a cease-fire in Gaza and the release of hostages. But the militant group said in a statement on Tuesday that it still seeks a comprehensive and complete" cease-fire to end "the aggression against our people". Israel has ruled out the kind of permanent cease-fire sought by the militant group. Qatar's prime minister said on Tuesday that Hamas' reaction to the latest plan for a cease-fire in Gaza and the release of hostages was generally positive" as he met with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who was making his latest visit to the Middle East. Qatar, which has long mediated with Hamas, has been working with the US and Egypt to broker a cease-fire that would involve an extended halt in fighting and the release of the over 100 hostages still held by Hamas after its October 7 cross-border raid that ignited the war nearly four months ago. Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman ..

Qatar PM says Hamas had positive response to Gaza cease-fire proposal

Qatar's prime minister said on Tuesday that Hamas' reaction to the latest plan for a cease-fire in Gaza and the release of hostages was generally positive" as he met with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who was making his latest visit to the Middle East. Qatar, which has long mediated with Hamas, has been working with the US and Egypt to broker a cease-fire that would involve an extended halt in fighting and the release of the over 100 hostages still held by Hamas after its October 7 cross-border raid that ignited the war nearly four months ago. Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani did not provide any details on Hamas' response but said the group had comments. Blinken confirmed that officials had received Hamas' response and said he would brief Israel's leaders when he visits the country on Wednesday. Hamas said in a statement that it responded in a positive spirit to the latest proposal from the US and Mideast mediators. But the militant group said it still seeks a ...

Crude oil steadies after gains, Israel-Gaza ceasefire talks in focus

Brent crude futures dipped 8 cents to $77.91 a barrel by 0914 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures fell 13 cents to $72.65. Both contracts gained nearly 1% on Monday

McDonald's Oct-Dec results: Sales rise 3.4%, hit by West Asia boycotts

A banner year came to a bumpy end for McDonald's, which lost sales in many markets due to the war in Gaza. Global same-store sales or sales at restaurants open at least a year rose 3.4 per cent in the October-December period, well below the 4.7 per cent increase Wall Street was expecting, according to analysts polled by FactSet. Customers in the Middle East were angered after McDonald's Israel which is operated by a local franchisee -- announced in October it was providing free meals to Israeli soldiers. In response, some franchisees, like McDonald's Oman, announced donations to relief efforts in Gaza. Last month, McDonald's President and CEO Chris Kempczinski warned that misinformation in the Middle East and elsewhere was hurting sales. In addition to customer boycotts, McDonald's has had to temporarily limit store hours or close some locations due to protests. We abhor violence of any kind and firmly stand against hate speech, and we will always proudly open our doors to anyon

Blinken heads to Middle East to hold negotiations on hostages, Gaza aid

Blinken will travel to Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Qatar, Israel, and the West Bank from February 4-8. It is his fifth trip to the region since the Hamas' attacks on Israel on October 7

Hamas deploys police, distributes funds in sign of resurgence in Gaza

Hamas has begun deploying police forces and making partial salary payments to some of its civil servants in Gaza City in recent days, resurfacing in areas from which Israel had withdrawn the bulk of its troops a month ago, four residents and a senior official in the militant group said on Saturday. Signs of a Hamas resurgence in the Gaza Strip's largest city underscore the group's resilience despite Israel's deadly air and ground campaign against it over the past four months. Israel has said it's determined to crush Hamas militarily and prevent it from returning to power in Gaza, an enclave it has ruled since 2007. In recent days, Israeli forces renewed strikes in the western and northwestern parts of Gaza City, including in areas where some of the salary distributions were reported to have taken place. Four Gaza City residents told The Associated Press that in recent days, uniformed and plainclothes police officers deployed near police headquarters and other government offices, ...

EU worried Israel might extend Gaza war to unstable town near Egypt

The European Union on Saturday expressed deep concern over reports that the Israeli military intends to take its battle against Hamas to the town of Rafah at Gaza's border with Egypt where more than a million people have escaped the fighting. The EU's top diplomat warned that conflict is likely to spread throughout the region unless a cease-fire is agreed between Israel and Hamas, after U.S. airstrikes hit dozens of sites in Iraq and Syria used by Iranian-backed militias and the Iranian Revolutionary Guard. EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said that around 1 million Palestinians have been displaced progressively against the Egyptian border. They claimed they were safe zones, but in fact what we see is that the bombing affecting the civilian population continues and it is creating a very dire situation. Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said Thursday that after Israeli troops seize the southern city of Khan Younis, from where tens of thousands of people have fled, they will

Half of US adults say Israel has gone too far in war in Gaza: Poll

Half of U.S. adults say Israel's 15-week-old military campaign in Gaza has gone too far, a finding driven mainly by growing disapproval among Republicans and political independents, according to a new poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. Broadly, the poll shows support for Israel and the Biden administration's handling of the situation ebbing slightly further across the board. The poll shows 31% of U.S. adults approve of Biden's handling of the conflict, including just 46% of Democrats. That's as an earlier spike in support for Israel following the Hamas attacks Oct. 7 sags. Melissa Morales, a 36-year-old political independent in Runnemede, New Jersey, says she finds herself watching videos and news from Gaza daily. Images of Palestinian children wounded, orphaned or unhoused by the fighting in Gaza make her mind go to her own 3-year-old boy. I just can't even imagine, like, my son roaming the streets, wanting to be safe. Wanting his mom. Or just .

10,000 Indian workers to reach Israel soon in batches starting next week

With Israel's construction sector suffering a severe manpower crisis post the October 7 conflict with Hamas, some 10,000 workers from India are to make their way here starting next week, industry sources said on Wednesday. These 10,000 workers will reach in batches of 700 to 1,000 a week, a source in the Israel's Builders Association (IBA) told PTI here. With Israel's latest conflict with Hamas in Gaza a little short of four months, and a ban on the entry of Palestinian workers and the departure of several thousand other foreign workers, the Israeli construction industry has been facing a deep crisis and several ongoing projects are getting either stalled or delayed. Following the conflict, Israel has banned the entry of Palestinian workers. The departure of several thousand other foreign workers, the Israeli construction industry has been facing a deep crisis. Israeli business daily The Calcalist in a report in Hebrew last week said that the quota of foreign manpower for the ...

IDF confirms channelling large volumes of water in suspected Hamas tunnels

"This is a significant tool in combating the threat of Hamas' underground terrorist infrastructure," it also said

Hamas studies ceasefire proposal after Israeli hospital raid in West Bank

The raid underscored the risk of the Gaza war spreading to other fronts, while Israeli forces fought new battles with Hamas fighters in the Palestinian enclave

Netanyahu rules out Gaza pullout, release of thousands of militants Hamas

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday that there will be no military withdrawal from Gaza or the release of thousands of jailed militants, two key demands of Hamas in ongoing indirect cease-fire talks. During an event in the occupied West Bank, he once again vowed that the war will not end without absolute victory over Hamas. We will not end this war without achieving all of our goals, he said. We will not pull out the Israeli military from the Gaza Strip and we will not release thousands of terrorists.

President Joe Biden vows response as Iran denies role in US base attack

The troops were the first Americans to die from a West Asia attack since regional tensions were inflamed by the start of the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza last October

No links with drone strike in Jordan that killed US soldiers: Iran

The attack is a major escalation of the already tense situation in the Middle East, where war broke out in Gaza after an attack by Palestinian Islamist group Hamas on Israel on Oct

Israel notes 'significant gaps' after cease-fire talks with US, Qatar

Israel said significant gaps remain after cease-fire talks Sunday with the United States, Qatar and Egypt but called them constructive and said they would continue in the week ahead, a tentative sign of progress on a potential agreement that could see Israel pause military operations against Hamas in exchange for the release of remaining hostages. The US announced its first military deaths in the region since the war began and blamed Iran-backed militants for the drone strike in Jordan that killed three American service members amid concerns about a wider conflict. The statement from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office on the cease-fire talks did not say what the significant gaps were. There was no immediate statement from the other parties. The war has killed more than 26,000 Palestinians, according to local health officials, destroyed vast swaths of Gaza and displaced nearly 85 per cent of the territory's people. Israel says its air and ground offensive has killed

US, Qatar lead high-stakes talks in Paris on Gaza hostage, ceasefire

Recent reports indicate a potential deal is closer, envisioning a two-month suspension of fighting in Gaza. The release of hostages would occur in two or three phases

3 Americans killed in drone attack by Iran-backed militia in Jordan: Biden

Three American service members were killed and many were wounded in a drone strike in Jordan, President Joe Biden said in a statement Sunday. He attributed the attack to Iran-backed militia groups. They were the first US fatalities in months of strikes against American forces across the Middle East by Iranian-backed militias amid the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, increasing the risk of escalation. Biden said the United States will hold all those responsible to account at a time and in a manner our choosing. There was no immediate reaction from Jordan, a kingdom bordering Iraq, Israel, the Palestinian territory of the West Bank, Saudi Arabia and Syria. US troops long have used Jordan as a basing point. Some 3,000 American troops typically are stationed in Jordan. Since Israel's war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip began, US troops in Iraq and Syria have faced drone and missile attacks on their bases. The attack on Jordan marks the first targeting American troops in Jordan during the war. Bi

American-led negotiators close in on Gaza agreement to halt fighting

"The abhorrent alleged acts of these staff members must have consequences," Secretary General Antonio Guterres said Sunday, referring to the UN Relief and Works Agency

What's arming Hamas? Increasingly stolen weapons from Israeli military

Analysts have pointed to smuggling routes to explain how Hamas stayed so heavily armed despite an Israeli military blockade of the Gaza Strip