- Hamas confirms new Gaza ceasefire talks with Israel in Doha
GAZA/DOHA: Israel and Hamas resumed ceasefire talks in Qatar, both sides said, even as Israeli forces ramped up a bombing campaign that has killed hundreds of people over 72 hours, and mobilised for a massive new ground assault, Reuters reports.
Taher Al-Nono, the media advisor for the Hamas leadership, told Reuters a new round of indirect talks with the Israeli delegation in Doha began, discussing all issues “without pre-conditions”.
“The Hamas delegation outlined the position of the group and the necessity to end the war, swap prisoners, the Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, and allowing humanitarian aid and all the needs of the people of Gaza back into the strip,” he added.
Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz also said in a statement that negotiations on a deal to release Israeli hostages held by Hamas had resumed in Doha.
He noted that the talks had started without Israel first agreeing to a ceasefire or to lift its blockade.
Hamas has confirmed a new round of Gaza ceasefire talks with Israel was underway in Qatar’s Doha, group official Taher al-Nono told Reuters.
He said both sides were discussing all issues without “pre-conditions”
New Gaza aid plans ‘a distraction from atrocities’: UNRWA chief
Philippe Lazzarini, the head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), says humanitarians in Gaza are ready to deliver assistance to Palestinians but can’t carry out that work due to Israel’s blockade, which has been in place since March 2, Al Jazeera reports.
“Our aid is piled up outside: food will rot, medicines will expire. At the same time, the clock is ticking towards famine. The people of Gaza are dying,” Lazzarini wrote on X.
Referring to a US-backed humanitarian operation in Gaza that has been rejected by aid groups and the UN, Lazzarini also said, “Don’t reinvent the wheel.”
He said putting together new plans is a distraction from the atrocities and waste of resources.
‘Enough with the attacks’ in Gaza, Italy tells Israel
Italy’s government has upped its exhortations to Israel to stop deadly military strikes in Gaza, with Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani saying, “Enough with the attacks,” AFP reports.
“We no longer want to see the Palestinian people suffer,” Tajani said during a trip to Sicily, in remarks relayed by his spokesman.
“Let’s come to a ceasefire, let’s free the hostages, but let’s leave people who are victims of Hamas alone,” he was cited as saying.
