Smoke rises following an Israeli bombardment in Rafah,south Gaza.Credit:AP
Israel has called on the rest of the world to blacklist Hamas as a terrorist organisation,saying it must be removed from power in Gaza after its October 7 rampage across southern Israel that killed about 1200 and triggered the war.
But the sides have recently relaunched indirect talks,mediated by Egypt,Qatar and the United States. The goal is to achieve another ceasefire,and to free more of the hostages Hamas took in its attack in exchange for Palestinians imprisoned by Israel.
“These are very serious discussions and negotiations,and we hope that they lead somewhere,” the White House’s national security spokesman,John Kirby,said aboard Air Force One while travelling with US President Joe Biden to Wisconsin.
Mobile phone and internet service was down across Gaza again overnight,an outage that could complicate efforts to communicate with Hamas leaders inside the territory who went into hiding after October 7.
The war has led to a humanitarian crisis in Gaza. Tens of thousands of people are crammed into overcrowded shelters and tent camps amid shortages of food,medicine and other basic supplies. Israel’s foreign minister travelled to Cyprus to discuss the possibility of establishing a maritime corridor that would allow the delivery of large amounts of humanitarian aid to Gaza.
Wide gap remains in hostage talks