US ‘asked Qatar to expel Hamas’ after hostage deal snub

The US told Qatar the presence of Hamas in Doha is no longer acceptable in the weeks since the Palestinian terrorist group rejected the latest proposal to achieve a ceasefire and a hostage deal, a senior administration official says. Read more

Hamas scrambles for ceasefire as Israel mulls cutting off northern Gaza aid

Hamas’s new willingness to negotiate a ceasefire stems from its fear of a plan being considered by Israeli leaders to isolate northern Gaza from humanitarian aid and starve the terror group, and not necessarily because of the death of Yahya Sinwar in mid-October. Read more

No agreement in Gaza ceasefire talks in Cairo

Washington is still “feverishly” working in Cairo with Egyptian and Qatari mediators as well as the Israelis to get a ceasefire and a hostage deal. Read more

Negotiations continue

Gaza ceasefire and hostage negotiators discussed new compromise proposals in Cairo on Saturday, seeking to bridge gaps between Israel and Hamas. Read more

Blinken says Israel accepts Gaza ‘bridging proposal’

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken says Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has accepted a “bridging proposal” presented by Washington to tackle disagreements blocking a ceasefire deal in Gaza, and urged Hamas to do the same.
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Middle East ceasefire ‘never more urgent’: Wong

Foreign Minister Penny Wong has reiterated calls for a ceasefire in the Middle East following talks with her US counterpart. Read more

Were Americans listening to Netanyahu’s message?

What Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in his address to a joint meeting of Congress was important. Read more

Biden says no Gaza ceasefire deal soon

President Joe Biden says he doesn’t expect to seal a Gaza ceasefire deal in the near future, as a US-backed proposal with global support has not been fully embraced by Israel or Hamas. Read more

Israel vows military operation as ceasefire talks end

The latest round of Gaza ceasefire talks have ended in Cairo after “in-depth and serious discussions”, Hamas says. Read more

Divided by possible hostage deal, Israeli war cabinet meeting cancelled

A meeting of Israel’s War Cabinet scheduled for Tuesday night was cancelled as the governing coalition was divided over a possible hostage deal with Hamas. Read more

Netanyahu’s approach to war in Gaza a ‘mistake’: Biden

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s approach to the war in Gaza is a “mistake,” US President Joe Biden says in a new interview, offering further criticism of Israel’s handling of the conflict. Read more

War is hell. Everywhere.

“War,” the Union Army Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman is famously said to have told a group of army cadets some years after the American Civil War, “is hell.” Read more

Israel to attend truce talks, Gaza hunger crisis acute

The main UN aid agency operating in Gaza says acute malnutrition is accelerating in the north of the Palestinian enclave as Israel prepares to send a delegation to Qatar for new ceasefire talks on a hostage deal with Hamas. Read more

Hamas presses on with Gaza truce talks without Israel

Hamas and Egyptian mediators are pressing on with talks in Cairo on securing a ceasefire in Gaza, despite Israel’s decision not to send a delegation, as Washington pressed again for a truce, the release of hostages and a plan to alleviate the humanitarian catastrophe. Read more

Gaza truce in balance as Hamas seeks plan to end war

Mediators are expected to reconvene in Cairo soon and search for a formula acceptable to Israel and Hamas for a lasting ceasefire in Gaza, as pressure mounts for a pause in fighting by Ramadan. Read more

Israel agrees ceasefire framework, now up to Hamas: US

Israel has essentially endorsed a framework of a proposed Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal, and it is now up to Hamas to agree to it, a day before talks to reach an agreement were to resume in Egypt. Read more

Biden hopes for Gaza ceasefire, hostage deal by March 4

US President Joe Biden says he hopes a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas that will pause hostilities and allow for remaining hostages to be released can take effect by March 4. Read more

Palestinians pin hopes on Gaza truce before Rafah push

The top United States diplomat has met Saudi Arabia’s de-facto ruler in a visit that Palestinians hope will deliver a truce before a threatened Israeli assault on Rafah, the border city where about half of the population is sheltering. Read more

As ceasefire deal takes shape, Mahmoud Abbas lays groundwork for return to Gaza

An emerging Israel-Hamas ceasefire in Gaza will take place in three stages over a period of several weeks, the Tazpit Press Service has learned. Read more

Plan for one-month Gaza truce makes progress

Israel and Hamas have moved closer to an agreement on a 30-day ceasefire in Gaza when Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners would be released, sources tell Reuters, as Israel presses ahead with its assault on southern Gaza’s main city of Khan Younis. Read more

Hamas rejects offer of two-month ceasefire for release of all hostages

Hamas rejected an Israeli proposal for a two-month ceasefire in exchange for the staged release of the 136 remaining hostages being held in the Gaza Strip, a senior Egyptian official told the Associated Press on Tuesday. Read more

Israeli UN envoy: ‘How morally bankrupt has this body become?’

Israel’s Ambassador to the United Nations, Gilad Erdan, ripped into the U.N. General Assembly during a Tuesday morning meeting while holding up a cake with the face of Kfir Bibas, who will turn one year old in the coming days. Read more

UN & NYT make bad choice burying Hashemite Kingdom of Palestine

Thomas Friedman – foreign affairs Opinion columnist at the New York Times (NYT) – could have well been passing judgement on the NYT, himself and the United Nations (UN) for their failure to mention the existence of the Hashemite Kingdom of Palestine solution (HKOPS) even once after its publication on 8 June 2022. Read more

Egypt floats ambitious plan to end Israel-Hamas war

Egypt has put forward an ambitious, initial proposal to end the Israel-Hamas war with a ceasefire, a phased hostage release and the creation of a Palestinian government of experts. Read more

Hostages’ families step up protests amid reports of new ceasefire

Israeli and Arab officials have, over the past week, ramped up efforts to forge another ceasefire deal between Jerusalem and Hamas. Read more

Gaza ceasefire talks as Hamas, Israel assert demands

“Very serious” negotiations are taking place on a second Gaza ceasefire, the US says, but Hamas and Israel’s conditions make the chances of a deal uncertain. Read more

Hipkins and NZ Labour call for Israel-Hamas ceasefire

The New Zealand Labour Party has called for a ceasefire in the Israel-Gaza conflict, breaking with caretaker conventions to declare its policy. Read more

Greens Senate walkout criticising the government

Greens Senator Mehreen Faruqi led a protest walk-out by her party during the Senate yesterday’s Question Time at the end of a fire and brimstone speech criticising the government’s position on the Israel-Gaza war. Read more

Hamas and Israeli teams in Cairo for negotiations on long-term ceasefire

A Hamas delegation arrived in Cairo on Wednesday for a series of meetings and discussions on issues regarding the rehabilitation of the Gaza Strip after Operation Guardian of the Walls, and to examine the possibility of an exchange of prisoners and captives with Israel. Read more

AIJAC welcomes ceasefire

The Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council (AIJAC) has welcomed the ceasefire in Israel and Gaza reached yesterday. Read more

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