Pressure for Gaza truce deal rises
Qatar, which has been mediating on Gaza between Israel and Hamas, stressed yesterday that there should be a clear position from both parties to reach a ceasefire deal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
“We are waiting for a clear Israeli position that represents the entire government in response to the US’s Gaza proposal,” said Qatari foreign ministry spokesperson Majed Al-Ansari.
“The ceasefire deal should immediately end the long suffering of all people in Gaza and the hostages and their families and provide a roadmap for a permanent ceasefire and an end to the crisis”, Al-Ansari said.
Biden hints Netanyahu prolonging Gaza offensive
Israeli strikes target Gaza City, Rafah
Death toll in enclave rises to 36,550
Qatar said that it is still waiting to reach language that is agreed by both parties.
US President Joe Biden on Friday laid out a three-phase ceasefire proposal from Israel to Hamas to end the offensive in Gaza that has killed tens of thousands and caused a humanitarian crisis.
The offer calls for a ceasefire, the release of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners, and the reconstruction of Gaza.
United Nations human rights chief Volker Turk yesterday expressed his support for the US-proposed ceasefire deal, describing the situation in the Palestinian territory as “beyond catastrophic”, reports Reuters.
Turk said norms and standards on the conduct of war had been brutally violated in Gaza, and any initiative that can lead to an end in hostilities was welcomed.
Biden swiped at Benjamin Netanyahu in an interview with Time magazine published yesterday, saying there was “every reason” to conclude the Israeli prime minister was dragging out the Gaza offensive to save himself politically.
Biden added that he had a “major disagreement” with Netanyahu over the post-conflict future of Gaza, and said Israel had engaged in “inappropriate” conduct during the offensive.
But for now, the Gaza offensive raged on unabated yesterday, with the Israeli military reporting more air and artillery strikes and ground combat against Hamas, and Palestinians bemoaning more civilian deaths.
Overnight bombardment hit targets in Gaza City and the southern Rafah area, said AFP reporters and witnesses.
Four bodies were retrieved from a bombed house in the Bureij camp in central Gaza, and three more from the rubble of a destroyed building in Gaza City, Gaza’s civil defence agency said.
Israel’s military offensive in the Gaza Strip has killed at least 36,550 Palestinians and wounded 82,959 since October 7, the Palestinian enclave’s health ministry said yesterday. A total of 71 Palestinians have been killed and 182 wounded in the past 24 hours, the ministry said in a statement.
The Israeli military had on Monday confirmed another four deaths among the more than 250 captives taken by Hamas.
Washington unveiled a draft UN Security Council resolution on Monday that “welcomes the new deal… and calls upon Hamas to accept it fully and implement its terms without delay and without condition”.
US ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield said “numerous leaders and governments, including in the region, have endorsed this plan”.
Biden told Qatar’s emir that “Hamas is now the only obstacle to a complete ceasefire” and “confirmed Israel’s readiness to move forward” with the terms he set out last week.
The truce plan also drew the full endorsement of the other leaders of the G7 which also includes Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Japan.
They said it would also bring “a significant and sustained increase in humanitarian assistance for distribution throughout Gaza, and an enduring end to the crisis, with Israel’s security interests and Gazan civilian safety assured”. bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc bxc
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