DEVELOPING | Two doctors killed in Israeli airstrike on central Gaza, pro-Palestinian rallies ramp up

Two doctors killed in Israeli air strike on central Gaza

Palestinian Territories – Gaza's civil defence agency said on Sunday that two doctors were killed in an Israeli air strike on the city of Deir al-Balah in a central area of the Palestinian territory.

"The bodies of Doctor Muhammad Nimr Qazaat and his son, Doctor Youssef, were recovered (as they were killed) because of an Israeli raid on the city of Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip, and they were transferred to Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah," the agency said in a statement.

 - AFP

Biden says Gaza ceasefire possible 'tomorrow' if Hamas frees hostages

Medina, United States – US President Joe Biden said on Saturday that a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war was possible as soon as "tomorrow" if the militant group released its hostages.

"There would be a ceasefire tomorrow if Hamas would release the hostages," Biden said at a fundraiser outside Seattle, at the home of a former Microsoft executive, after avoiding the topic at three similar events on Friday.

"Israel said it's up to Hamas, if they wanted to do it, we could end it tomorrow. And the ceasefire would begin tomorrow," Biden told the crowd of about 100 people.

The president raised the issue after warning Israel on Wednesday that he would stop supplying artillery shells and other weapons if its forces attack the city of Rafah, in southern Gaza, as he deplored the fact that civilians had been killed by the dropping of US bombs.

"If they go into Rafah, I'm not supplying the weapons that have been used... to deal with the cities," Biden said in a televised interview with CNN.

"We're not gonna supply the weapons and the artillery shells that have been used."

 - AFP 

Hamas says Israeli-British hostage held in Gaza dead due to Israeli air strikes

Gaza Strip, Palestinian Territories – Hamas' armed wing said in a video on Saturday that an Israeli-British hostage held in captivity in Gaza since the 7 October attack had died from wounds sustained from Israeli air strikes.

Earlier on Saturday, the Ezzedine Al-Qassam Brigades released an 11-second clip showing captive Nadav Popplewell alive and identifying himself. The Hostages and Missing Families Forum campaign group identified him in a statement.

In the video, the footage was superimposed with text in Arabic and Hebrew that read: "Time is running out. Your government is lying."

The hostage had a black eye in the clip but showed no other visible signs of injuries. Wearing a white T-shirt and appearing to speak under duress, he introduced himself as 51-year-old Popplewell, from kibbutz Nirim in southern Israel.

Later on Saturday, Hamas released what appeared to be a full version of the video from which the earlier clip was taken.

Hamas claimed in the video that Popplewell had died on Saturday of his earlier wounds.

"Nadav Popplewell, a British citizen, died today after being seriously injured a month ago (due to Zionist air strikes)," a superimposed text in English said in the video below a picture of the hostage shown in a white photo frame.

"His health deteriorated because he did not receive intensive medical care because the enemy has destroyed the Gaza Strip's hospitals," Abu Obeida, the spokesperson of the Ezzedine Al-Qassam Brigades, said in a separate statement.

AFP was unable to independently verify the authenticity of the video.

 - AFP 

Thousands of pro-Palestinian protesters rally in Madrid

Madrid – Thousands of pro-Palestinian demonstrators marched through Madrid on Saturday to demand a ceasefire in war-torn Gaza and a severing of ties between Spain and Israel.

Numbering around 4 000 according to the authorities, protesters held up banners and signs condemning a "genocide" in Gaza and lauding the "resistance" of the Palestinian people.

Palestinians have been "crammed" in southern Gaza and "now they are displaced again from one place to another while there are no more safe places", said 57-year-old Jaldia Abubakra, referring to Israeli evacuation orders in the city of Rafah.

Around 30 organisations called for the rally before the 76th anniversary of what Palestinians call the "Nakba" ("catastrophe"), when 760 000 people fled their homes during the 1948 war that accompanied Israel's creation.

Spanish students have set up peaceful sit-ins and camps at universities in Madrid, Barcelona and Valencia in recent days, mirroring similar pro-Palestinian campus movements across the United States and Europe.

 - AFP

Israel orders residents from more east Rafah areas to evacuate

 Israel on Saturday called on residents from more areas of Rafah in the Gaza Strip to evacuate and head to the "expanded humanitarian area" in Al-Mawasi, according to a post on social media site X by the military's Arabic spokesperson.

- Reuters

US slams Israel's use of American weapons in Gaza but stops short of halting shipments

The United States has issued a stunning criticism of Israel's use of American weapons in the Gaza war after Israeli forces intensified operations around the southern city of Rafah, where more than a million displaced people are sheltering.

Israel's main international ally said in a report released Friday that it was "reasonable to assess" that Israel has used weapons in ways inconsistent with international humanitarian law during the seven-month war.

South Africa asks World Court for more measures in Israel genocide case

South Africa has asked the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to order additional emergency measures against Israel over its attacks on Rafah in the Gaza Strip, the UN's top court said on Friday.

In the ongoing case brought by South Africa, which accuses Israel of acts of genocide against Palestinians, the World Court in January ordered Israel to refrain from any acts that could fall under the Genocide Convention and to ensure its troops commit no genocidal acts against Palestinians.

- Reuters

UN votes symbolically in favor of Palestinian membership

The UN General Assembly voted overwhelmingly Friday in support of a Palestinian bid for full membership of the organization, a symbolic move due to the United States' veto in the Security Council.

The resolution, which states that the Palestinians should be admitted to the UN and grants them some additional rights as observers, received 143 votes for, 9 against and 25 abstentions.

- AFP

Israeli strike kills telecoms technician, then medic coming to help in Lebanon

Lebanese state media said an Israeli strike in south Lebanon on Friday killed a first responder from a rescue group affiliated with a Hezbollah-allied movement and a telecoms technician doing maintenance work.

Israel and Lebanon's Iran-backed Hezbollah, a Hamas ally, have exchanged near-daily cross-border fire following the Palestinian group's 7 October attack on southern Israel that sparked war in Gaza.

A Risala Scout association rescuer and a technician from Power Tec, which undertakes maintenance work for private mobile service provider MTC Touch, were killed "as a result of the Israeli aggression on Tayr Harfa", Lebanon's National News Agency said.

Workers from MTC Touch and the Ogero telecom provider were carrying out "maintenance on the transmission poles", the NNA said, adding they had sought permission from the UN peacekeeping mission in Lebanon, or UNIFIL.

The Risala Scout association affiliated with the Amal movement, which operates rescue teams in south Lebanon, said the rescuer was killed when his team went to a location that had come under Israeli bombardment.

"The second strike came quickly, and one of the young men was martyred," a source from the association told AFP.

A source within MTC Touch said the strike hit a team that had been doing maintenance work in Tayr Haifa.

"We lost communications with them because the station was hit," the source told AFP, requesting anonymity because they were not authorised to speak to the media.

"There were people from our team and from another company that does maintenance work for us, and there were also paramedics," the source added.

- AFP

Israeli tanks encircle eastern half of Rafah

Israeli tanks captured the main road dividing the eastern and western halves of Rafah on Friday, effectively encircling the entire eastern side of the city in the southern Gaza Strip.

Residents described almost constant explosions and gunfire east and northeast of the city on Friday, with intense fighting between Israeli forces and militants from Hamas and Islamic Jihad.

Hamas said it ambushed Israeli tanks near a mosque in the east of the city, a sign the Israelis had penetrated several kilometres from the east to the outskirts of the built-up area.

Israel has ordered civilians out of the eastern half of Rafah, forcing tens of thousands of people to seek shelter outside the city, previously the last refuge of more than a million who fled other parts of the enclave during the war.

Israeli demonstrators torch part of UN compound in Jerusalem

The main United Nations aid agency for Palestinians closed its headquarters in East Jerusalem after local Israeli residents set fire to areas at the edge of the sprawling compound, the agency said.

Philippe Lazzarini, the head of UNWRA, said in a post on the social media platform X that he had decided to close the compound until proper security was restored. He said Thursday's incident was the second in less than a week.

"This is an outrageous development. Once again, the lives of UN staff were at a serious risk," he said.

"It is the responsibility of the State of Israel as an occupying power to ensure that United Nations personnel and facilities are protected at all times."

Lazzarini said staff were present at the time of the incident but there were no casualties.

However outdoor areas were damaged by the blaze, which was put out by staff after emergency services took time to respond.

There was no immediate comment from the Israeli police.

Lazzarini said groups of Israelis had been staging regular demonstrations outside the UNRWA compound for the past two months and said stones were thrown at staff and buildings in the compound this week.

In footage shared with Lazzarini's post, smoke can be seen rising near buildings at the edge of the compound while the sound of chanting and singing can be heard.

A crowd accompanied by armed men were witnessed outside the compound chanting "Burn down the United Nations", Lazzarini said.

- Reuters

Hamas says 'ball is completely' in Israel's hands in Gaza truce talks  

Palestinian militant group Hamas said early on Friday that its delegation attending Gaza ceasefire negotiations in Cairo had left the city for Qatar, adding the "ball is now completely" in Israel's hands.  

"The negotiating delegation left Cairo heading to Doha. In practice, the occupation (Israel) rejected the proposal submitted by the mediators and raised objections to it on several central issues," the group said in a message to other Palestinian factions, adding it stood by the proposal.  

"Accordingly, the ball is now completely in the hands of the occupation."  

State-linked Egyptian outlet Al-Qahera News reported on Thursday that representatives of both camps left Cairo after two days of negotiations aimed at finalising a ceasefire deal in the seven-month war in the Gaza Strip.  

Efforts by Egypt and other mediators, namely Qatar and the United States, "continue to bring the points of view of the two parties closer together", the outlet added, citing a high-level Egyptian source.  

- AFP

'Booby-trapped shaft' in Rafah injures three soldiers, Israeli army says

The Israeli military said three soldiers were wounded in an explosion Thursday in a "booby-trapped shaft" in Rafah.

"The soldiers were evacuated to the hospital to receive medical treatment," the military said in a statement.

Israel says Rafah is the last redoubt of Hamas's remaining fighters but the city on the border with Egypt is also crammed with displaced Palestinian civilians.

- AFP

The Israeli military has the munitions it requires for operations in Rafah and other planned operations, chief armed forces spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said on Thursday.

- Reuters

Israel will go it alone if necessary, Netanyahu vows again

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appeared to rebuff on Thursday a vow by US President Joe Biden to halt some weapons supplies to Israel if it attacks Rafah, saying the country was prepared to stand alone if necessary.

"As I have already said, if we must, we shall fight with our fingernails," Netanyahu said in a video statement. "But we have much more than our fingernails, and with that strength of spirit, with God's help, together we shall be victorious."

- Reuters

US weapons hold sends the 'wrong message' to Hamas, says Israeli ambassador

The Israeli ambassador to the United States on Thursday said US President Joe Biden's decision to withhold weapons from Israel over its planned operation in Rafah sends the "wrong message" to the Hamas militant group and the country's foes.

"This is very unfortunate," Ambassador Michael Herzog told a Carnegie Endowment for International Peace webinar.

"It sends the wrong message to Hamas and to our enemies in the region."

"It puts us in a corner because we have to deal with Rafah one way or the other," Herzog said.

- Reuters

Biden says US is working with Arab states prepared to help with Gaza transition  

US President Joe Biden told CNN on Wednesday he was working with Arab states that are prepared to rebuild Gaza and help with the transition to a two-state solution, following the war between Hamas and Israel.  

- Reuters

Israel says Hamas naval commander killed in Gaza strike

The Israeli military said on Wednesday a recent air strike had killed the commander of Hamas' naval unit in Gaza City, accusing him of "attacks" against troops during the seven-month war.

Mohammed Ahmed Ali was killed in an air strike "in the past day", the military said in a statement.

Hamas did not immediately comment when asked about Ali's killing.

Sources in the Palestinian militant group said he was a member of its armed wing, the Ezzedine Al-Qassam Brigades.

The military statement said that "during the war, Ali was responsible for attacks on Israeli territory and against IDF (army) ground troops operating in the Gaza Strip" including in central Gaza over the past week.

-AFP

US weapons pause is 'very disappointing', says Israeli ambassador

Israel's UN ambassador Gilad Erdan said on Wednesday he did not believe the US would stop supplying arms to Israel but called Washington's decision to hold up some weapons shipments "very disappointing", even frustrating.

US President Joe Biden "can't say he is our partner in the goal to destroy Hamas [in the Gaza war] while on the other hand delay the means meant to destroy Hamas", Erdan said in an interview on Israel's Channel 12 News.

- Reuters

US considers further pause of weapons for Israel

The United States said Wednesday it was considering potential further holds on weapons to Israel after it halted shipments of powerful bombs out of concern about plans for a Rafah invasion.

Speaking to a congressional committee, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin confirmed the freeze last week on 1 800 bombs of 2,000 pounds, and another 1,700 bombs of 500 pounds.

"We paused one shipment of high-payload munitions" for Israel but have not "made a final determination on how to proceed with that shipment," Austin said.

State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said the United States had "very serious concerns" about Israel's stated plans to go into Rafah, where more than one million Palestinians have taken shelter during the war.

"So we have paused one shipment of near-term assistance and we are reviewing others," Miller said.

He said that the United States still had a "long-term commitment" to Israel's security and pointed to US assistance last month in shooting down drones fired from Iran.

"People should be absolutely clear that we are committed to Israel's security," he said.

But in Rafah, Miller said, "there are so many people crammed into such a small area."

He said that the United States was looking "at the way Israel has conducted its operations in the past and what the impact on civilian population has been."

- AFP

Lebanon security source says five killed in Israeli strikes on south

A Lebanese security source said five people, including two Hezbollah fighters, were killed on Wednesday in Israeli strikes on southern Lebanon, with a Palestinian armed group reporting three fatalities among its ranks.

Israel and Hezbollah, a Hamas ally, have stepped up cross-border exchanges that have been ongoing following the Palestinian group's 7 October attack on southern Israel that sparked the war in Gaza.

According to the Lebanese security source, "two Hezbollah fighters" were killed in an Israeli air strike on the border town of Adaisseh.

Hezbollah later said two of its fighters had been "martyred on the road to Jerusalem", the phrase it uses to refer to members killed by Israeli fire.

A separate strike on the village of Khiam on Wednesday killed three people who were likely "Palestinian combatants", the Lebanese source said.

The Islamic Jihad Palestinian militant group later released a statement saying three of its fighters were killed on the border with Israel.

-AFP

US pause Israel weapons shipment due to Rafah - defence secretary

President Joe Biden's decision to hold up delivery of high payload munitions to Israel was taken in the context of Israel's plans to carry out an offensive in Rafah that Washington opposes without new civilian safeguards, US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said on Wednesday.

"We've been very clear...from the very beginning that Israel shouldn't launch a major attack into Rafah without accounting for and protecting the civilians that are in that battlespace. And again, as we have assessed the situation, we have paused one shipment of high payload munitions," he told a Senate hearing.

"We've not made a final determination on how to proceed with that shipment."

-Reuters

Gaza officials say 49 bodies found at Al-Shifa hospital

Gaza health workers uncovered at least 49 bodies at Al-Shifa hospital on Wednesday, a medical official and Hamas authorities said, the latest such discovery at the facility previously raided by Israeli forces.

The Israeli military has repeatedly targeted Al-Shifa, the Palestinian territory's largest hospital, and other medical facilities in its war against Hamas, triggered by the Palestinian group's unprecedented 7 October attack.

Israel accuses Palestinian militants of using hospitals as command centres and to hold hostages abducted on 7 October.

Hamas denies the accusation.Motassem Salah, head of the emergency department at Al-Shifa, told journalists that "a third mass grave was found inside this hospital."

-AFP

Israel, Hezbollah trade heavy fire as violence escalates

Israel carried out heavy airstrikes in south Lebanon and Hezbollah said it had launched explosive drones and powerful rockets at Israeli targets on Wednesday in an escalation of seven months of hostilities in the border region.

Israeli attacks killed three people in Lebanon, security sources said.

The conflict between Hezbollah and Israel has rumbled on since October in parallel to the Gaza war, uprooting tens of thousands of people on both sides of the frontier and fuelling concern of a bigger war between the heavily armed adversaries.

The Israeli military said it had hit military structures and infrastructure belonging to the Iran-backed Hezbollah in three locations in south Lebanon, including more than 20 strikes on Hezbollah targets in the Ramyeh area.

Hezbollah said it had launched explosive drones at a military headquarters in the Israeli border town of Ya'ara, and fired its powerful Burkan rockets at a barracks in Biranit, among at least 10 attacks announced by the group on Wednesday.

-Reuters

Israel has nothing to say about reported US weapons halt

Israel has nothing to add to reports that the United States has halted the supply of some munitions, a government spokesperson said on Wednesday.

He said he had heard the reports but added "I personally and the Israeli government do not have anything to add on these reports".

- Reuters

Ceasefire talks restart in Cairo

Talks aimed at agreeing the terms of a truce in the seven-month war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza resumed in Cairo Wednesday "with all sides present", Egyptian media reported.

"Truce negotiations have resumed in Cairo today with all sides present," Egypt's AlQahera News, which is close to the intelligence services, reported, citing a "senior official" it did not identify. 

- AFP

Rocket-attacked Kerem Shalom is open again, Israel says

Israel said it reopened the Kerem Shalom border crossing to humanitarian aid for Gaza Wednesday, four days after closing it in response to a rocket attack that killed four soldiers.

"Trucks from Egypt carrying humanitarian aid, including food, water, shelter equipment, medicine and medical equipment donated by the international community are already arriving at the crossing," the army said in a joint statement with COGAT, the defence ministry body that oversees Palestinian civil affairs.

The supplies will be transferred to the Gaza side of the crossing after undergoing inspection, it added.

The statement said the Erez border crossing between Israel and northern Gaza is also open for aid deliveries into the Palestinian territory.

The Kerem Shalom crossing was closed after a Hamas rocket attack killed four soldiers and wounded more than a dozen on Sunday.

- AFP

AU condemns Rafah assault

The African Union on Wednesday condemned the Israeli incursion into the southern Gaza city of Rafah, calling for the international community to stop "this deadly escalation" of the war.

AU Commission chief Moussa Faki Mahamat "firmly condemns the extension of this war to the Rafah crossing, the only corridor for humanitarian aid", it said in a statement posted on X, after Israeli tanks captured the main conduit for supplies into the besieged Palestinian territory.

- AFP

US pauses bomb shipment to Israel over Rafah 'concerns'  

The United States halted a shipment of bombs to Israel last week after it failed to address Washington's concerns over plans to invade the southern Gaza city of Rafah, a senior US official said on Tuesday.  

"We have paused one shipment of weapons last week. It consists of 1 800 2 000-lb (907kg) bombs and 1 700 500-lb (226kg) bombs," the senior official in US President Joe Biden's administration said on condition of anonymity.  

"We have not made a final determination on how to proceed with this shipment," the official added.  

Biden's administration made the decision when it appeared Israel was on the verge of a major ground operation into Rafah, which Washington has strongly opposed.  

Israeli and US officials had been discussing alternatives but "those discussions are ongoing and have not fully addressed our concerns", the senior US official said.  

"As Israeli leaders seemed to approach a decision point on such an operation, we began to carefully review proposed transfers of particular weapons to Israel that might be used in Rafah. This began in April."  

- AFP

Ceasefire deal 'gaps can be closed', US says

Israel and Hamas militants should be able to close the remaining gaps in their positions in order to reach a ceasefire-for-hostages deal in Gaza, the White House said on Tuesday.

"We believe that these gaps can be closed," John Kirby, the White House national security spokesperson, told reporters as negotiators began gathering in Cairo for a fresh round of discussions.

Kirby said Hamas had offered amendments on Monday to an original Israeli proposal aimed at ending the impasse.

The deal text, as amended, suggests the remaining gaps can "absolutely be closed," he said.

- Reuters

A Hamas delegation arrived in Cairo from Doha, Qatar on Tuesday to follow up on Gaza ceasefire negotiations, a statement from the group that runs the Strip said.

- Reuters

Israel says it will 'deepen' Gaza operation if no progress on hostages

Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said Tuesday Israel was prepared to "deepen" its Gaza operation if truce talks fail to secure the release of hostages held there by militants.

Israel is prepared to "make compromises" to get hostages out of Gaza, Gallant said after touring the Rafah area following an overnight Israeli incursion into the Palestinian territory's south, while stressing in a statement that "if that option is not available, we will go and deepen the operation".

- AFP

Israeli delegation arrives in Cairo for ceasefire talks, but Rafah assault continues

A team of mid-ranking Israeli officials has arrived in Cairo to assess whether Hamas can be persuaded to shift on its latest ceasefire offer, a senior Israeli official said on Tuesday.

The official earlier reiterated that the current Hamas proposal was unacceptable to Israel.

"This delegation is made up of mid-level envoys. Were there a credible deal in the offing, the principals would be heading the delegation," the official told Reuters, referring to the senior officials from the intelligence services Mossad and Shin Bet who are leading the Israeli side.

The team's arrival in the Egyptian capital came hours after Israeli tanks took control of the Palestinian side of the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and Gaza.

Israeli jets have carried out repeated strikes on eastern Rafah, the city in southern Gaza where more than one million Palestinians displaced by the seven-month war have been sheltering.

Egypt's state-aligned Al Qahera News TV reported that there were still efforts by the two sides to contain the escalation.

But an Israeli government spokesperson said in a briefing earlier that Israel's objective remains to destroy Hamas.

"We're always open to a diplomatic resolution... but I must tell you that this operation in Rafah is designed to destroy the last four battalions of Hamas. This country will be protected, and Hamas will be completely annihilated," said David Mencer.

Egyptian officials have asked Israel to stop the Rafah operation immediately, Al Qahera News TV reported. Hamas issued a statement saying the Rafah operation was designed to undermine ceasefire efforts.

- Reuters

Israel ally Germany warns against Rafah assault

Germany warned Tuesday against a "major offensive" in Rafah after Israel sent tanks into the city in southern Gaza, and called for crossings into the territory to be reopened.

"I warn against a major offensive on Rafah," said Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock on X, formerly Twitter.

"A million people cannot simply vanish into thin air. They need protection. They need more humanitarian aid urgently... the Rafah and Kerem Shalom border crossings must immediately be reopened." 

- AFP

Gaza hostage families ask for foreign pressure towards ceasefire deal

Families of hostages held in Gaza have urged the United States and other governments with citizens among the captives to pressure Israel to strike a deal with Hamas for their return.

Following indications Monday of progress in talks towards a truce in the seven-month war, the Hostages and Missing Families Forum said it had appealed to a number of countries to "exert your influence on the Israeli government" and push for an agreement.

"At this crucial moment, while a tangible opportunity for the release of the hostages is on the table, it is of the utmost importance that your government manifest its strong support for such an agreement," the group said in a message sent to the ambassadors of all countries with citizens among the hostages seized by Palestinian militants on 7 October 7.

"This is the time to exert your influence on the Israeli government and all other parties concerned to ensure that the agreement comes through which will finally bring all our loved ones home."

- AFP

Why did Israel reject ceasefire deal? Details start to emerge

Hamas on Monday said it had agreed to a ceasefire proposal very close to one put forward by Israel. By Tuesday it was still not clear exactly why Israel had rejected that deal, but some more details were starting to emerge.

One Israeli official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Israel's demonstrated determination to move against Rafah had pushed Hamas into putting out its latest proposal hastily. That proposal took the basic framework of a proposal from 27 April, based around a halt in fighting and a return of some of the more than 130 Israeli hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners in Israel, and stretched it to "unacceptable extremes", the official said.

However, another official said Hamas had agreed to the phased ceasefire and hostage release deal Israel proposed on 27 April with only minor changes that did not affect the main parts of the proposal.

The new demand would not allow Israel to veto the release of specific Palestinian prisoners, including Marwan Barghouti, a leader from the Fatah faction currently serving a life sentence for his role in mounting deadly attacks against Israelis.

"Hamas wants them all to be eligible and for Israel to have no say in the matter," the official said.

It would also lift restrictions on the import into Gaza of so-called dual use materials that can be used for both civilian and military purposes.

"Hamas says these should be allowed in for the rehabilitation of Gaza, but we know that their intention is to manufacture munitions."

In addition, Hamas was now offering to release only 18 hostages in the first phase of a truce, instead of the 33 who would have been released under previous proposals, with the remainder to come in a subsequent phase.

"That means Israel would get only 18 hostages if it sticks to its refusal to call off the offensive," the official said.

- Reuters

Egypt still hopes to stop Rafah assault

Egypt's state-aligned Al Qahera News TV reported that there were still efforts to contain the escalation between Hamas and Israel, and said Egyptian officials had asked Israel to stop the Rafah operation immediately.

Egypt is a key broker in ceasefire negotiations.

Israel on Tuesday took control of the Rafah border crossing with Egypt, not long after Hamas said it had agreed to a ceasefire proposal.

Hamas issued a statement saying the operation was designed to undermine ceasefire efforts.

- Reuters

Palestinian Authority seeks US intervention on Rafah

The Palestinian Authority called on the United States to "intervene immediately" to prevent Israel from invading Gaza's southernmost city of Rafah, the official Palestinian WAFA news agency reported on Tuesday.

- Reuters

Israel sends only "mid-level" team to Cairo for talks

A team of mid-ranking Israeli officials will go to Cairo in the next few hours to assess whether Hamas can be persuaded to shift on its latest ceasefire offer, a senior Israeli official said on Tuesday, reiterating that the proposal as it currently stands was unacceptable to Israel.

"This delegation is made up of mid-level envoys. Were there a credible deal in the offing, the principals would be heading the delegation," the official told Reuters.

Gaza is now effectively closed to aid, UN agencies say

UN agencies said on Tuesday that the two main crossings into Gaza Strip remain shut, virtually cutting off the enclave from outside aid with very few stores stationed inside the enclave.

The global agency's humanitarian office spokesperson Jens Laerke said at a Geneva press briefing that Israel had shut both the Rafah and Kerem Shalom crossings as part of its Rafah military operation.

"The two main arteries for getting aid into Gaza are currently choked off," he said, saying that UN agencies had very low stocks inside the Gaza Strip since humanitarian supplies are consumed straight away.

"If no fuel comes in for a prolonged period of time it would be a very effective way of putting the humanitarian operation in its grave," he added.

- Reuters

Israel says it controls Rafah border crossing

The Israeli army said it took "operational control" of the Palestinian side of the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt on Tuesday and that troops were scanning the area.

"Last night, IDF troops managed to establish operational control of the Gazan side of (Rafah) crossing," the military said.

"Right now, at the moment what's happening, we have operational control over the Gazan side of Rafah crossing, and we have special forces scanning the area to find additional terror infrastructure or terrorists," the military said.

"We are only talking about the Gazan side of the Rafah crossing."

The military said it was currently engaged in a "very targeted operation and a very limited scope against very specific targets" in eastern Rafah.

"A vast amount of the organisation and the people in the area within (which) we gave the evacuation notice yesterday (Monday) moved to a safer zone."

Since the start of its operation in eastern Rafah the military has killed 20 militants, it said.

- AFP

Biden urges Netanyahu not to invade Rafah  

US President Joe Biden discussed anti-Semitism in a call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday, during which he pushed for Israel not to invade Rafah, according to a readout of the conversation.  

The two leaders discussed the "shared commitment" of Israel and the US to remember the six million Jews killed during the Holocaust by Nazi Germany "and to forcefully act against anti-Semitism and all forms of hate-fuelled violence", it said.  

- AFP

Pulitzer Prizes honour Gaza war coverage  

The war in Gaza featured prominently in Monday's Pulitzer Prizes, which included a special citation for journalists covering the Israel-Hamas conflict.  

The New York Times won a Pulitzer in international reporting for its "wide-ranging and revelatory coverage of Hamas' lethal attack in southern Israel on Oct. 7", as well as reporting on "the Israeli military's sweeping, deadly response".  

Reuters meanwhile won the award for breaking news photography for its "raw and urgent" coverage of the 7 October attack and Israeli response, while a special citation recognised "journalists and media workers covering the war in Gaza".  

"This war has also claimed the lives of poets and writers," the committee said.  

"As the Pulitzer Prizes honour categories of journalism, arts and letters, we mark the loss of invaluable records of the human experience."  

- AFP

US campuses 'contaminated' by hatred - Israel president  

Jewish students have reported an increase in anti-Semitism since Hamas' 7 October attack on Israel, and Israel's president Isaac Herzog said last week that US campuses were "contaminated" by hatred.  

Those comments came as protesters - including many Jewish students critical of Israel's treatment of Palestinians - stage recurring protests against the country's ongoing war in Gaza.  

US President Joe Biden "will reaffirm that we respect and protect the fundamental right to free speech", Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said, while at the same time making clear "there is no place on any campus or anywhere for anti-Semitism."  

"There is no place for hate speech or threats of violence against the Jewish people."  

Protesters have said they reject alleged anti-Semitic incidents and have criticised the lack of attention given to alleged harassment of Muslim and Palestinian students.  

- AFP

Biden to condemn anti-Semitism in speech amid Gaza protests  

US President Joe Biden will speak out against anti-Semitism at a Holocaust memorial ceremony on Tuesday, as tensions remain high over nationwide campus protests against Israel's war in Gaza.  

The speech at the US Capitol comes after Biden finally addressed the demonstrations last week, following days of silence that drew criticism from both Republicans and his fellow Democrats in an election year.  

It also comes as the president warns Israel against invading the crowded Gazan city of Rafah, while pushing for a ceasefire with Hamas - which said on Monday it had accepted a deal for a truce and hostage release.  

In his keynote address at the US Holocaust Memorial Museum's annual Days of Remembrance ceremony in the Capitol, Biden will "recommit to heeding the lessons of this dark chapter", the White House said on Monday.  

"He will speak to the horrors of October 7 when Hamas unleashed the deadliest day for Jewish people since the Holocaust," Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said.  

"And he will speak to how since October 7, we've seen an alarming rise in anti-Semitism in the US - in our cities, our communities and on our campuses."  

- AFP

No deal yet, says Netanyahu

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Monday that his war cabinet approved continuing an operation in the southern Gaza city of Rafah in order to increase pressure on Hamas to release Israeli hostages and achieve the country's other war goals.

At the same time, even though Hamas' latest truce proposal falls short of Israel's demands, Israel would send a delegation to meet with negotiators to try to reach an acceptable agreement, Netanyahu's office said in a statement.

- Reuters

Israel confirms Rafah strikes

The Israeli military said on Monday it was currently conducting targeted strikes against targets belonging to the Islamist group Hamas in the eastern part of the southern Gaza city of Rafah.

- Reuters

42-day phases, Israeli withdrawal from Gaza in deal, Hamas says

Senior Hamas member Khalil al-Hayya said Monday a proposal agreed by the group for a Gaza ceasefire includes a three-stage truce with the goal of a lasting ceasefire.

Hayya told Qatar-based Al Jazeera channel that each phase would last 42 days, and the deal includes plans for a complete Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, the return of Palestinians displaced by the ongoing war, an exchange of hostages and prisoners and the aim of a "permanent ceasefire".

- AFP