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11.10.2024
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Bombing & destruction needed for takeover for The New Ben Gurion Canal continue unabated.
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Israeli strikes kill dozens in Lebanon and isolated northern Gaza while Netanyahu and Trump speak
WAFAA SHURAFA, SAMY MAGDY and KAREEM CHEHAYEB
Updated Sun, November 10, 2024 at 12:18 PM CST·5 min read
Rescue workers and people search for victims under the rubble of a destroyed house hit in an Israeli airstrike, in Aalmat village, northern Lebanon, Sunday, Nov. 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)
A woman with a child pass at the site where an Israeli airstrike hit a house in Aalmat village, northern Lebanon, Sunday, Nov. 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)Rescue workers use excavators to remove the rubble of a destroyed house hit in an Israeli airstrike, as they search for victims in Aalmat village, northern Lebanon, Sunday, Nov. 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)People check a damaged car at the site where an Israeli airstrike hit a house in Aalmat village, northern Lebanon, Sunday, Nov. 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)Rescue workers search for victims under the rubble of a destroyed house hit in an Israeli airstrike, in Aalmat village, northern Lebanon, Sunday, Nov. 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)Rescue workers and people, centre, search for victims under the rubble of a destroyed house hit in an Israeli airstrike, in Aalmat village, northern Lebanon, Sunday, Nov. 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)A man cleans a house, as a portrait hanging on the wall shows the late Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, at the site where an Israeli airstrike hit a house in Aalmat village, northern Lebanon, Sunday, Nov. 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)Rescue workers search for victims under the rubble of a destroyed house hit in an Israeli airstrike, in Aalmat village, northern Lebanon, Sunday, Nov. 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)Rescue workers use excavators to remove the rubble of a destroyed house hit in an Israeli airstrike, as they search for victims in Aalmat village, northern Lebanon, Sunday, Nov. 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)Rescue workers use an excavator to remove the rubble of a destroyed house hit in an Israeli airstrike, as they search for victims in Aalmat village, northern Lebanon, Sunday, Nov. 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)Rescue workers use an excavator to remove the rubble of a destroyed house hit in an Israeli airstrike, as they search for victims in Aalmat village, northern Lebanon, Sunday, Nov. 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)
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Lebanon Israel
Rescue workers use an excavator to remove the rubble of a destroyed house hit in an Israeli airstrike, as they search for victims in Aalmat village, northern Lebanon, Sunday, Nov. 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)ASSOCIATED PRESS
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israeli strikes killed dozens of people including children on Sunday in Lebanon and isolated northern Gaza, as the world watched for signs of how the U.S. election might affect the war against Iranian-backed militant groups Hamas and Hezbollah.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he has spoken three times with Donald Trump since Tuesday’s election and they “see eye-to-eye regarding the Iranian threat and all of its components.” Israel’s president, Isaac Herzog, is scheduled to meet with U.S. President Joe Biden on Tuesday.
The Israeli airstrike in Lebanon killed at least 23 people including seven children in Aalmat village north of Beirut, far from the areas in the east and south where Hezbollah has a major presence. There was no Israeli evacuation warning. There was no immediate Israeli comment.
Hezbollah began firing rockets, drones and missiles into Israel after war broke out in Gaza, in solidarity with the Palestinians and Hamas. Israel retaliated, and a series of escalations have led to all-out war.
In northern Gaza, an Israeli strike on a home sheltering displaced people in the urban refugee camp of Jabaliya killed at least 17 people including nine women, according to Dr. Fadel Naim, director of Al-Ahly Hospital in Gaza City.
Israel's military said it targeted a site where militants were operating, without providing evidence. It said the details of the strike are under review.
A separate strike hit a house in Gaza City, killing Wael al-Khour, a minister in the Hamas-run government, as well as his wife and three children, according to the Civil Defense first responders who operate under the government.
Israel strikes deeper into Lebanon
Israel has struck deeper inside Lebanon since September, when it killed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and most of his top commanders. Hezbollah has expanded its rocket fire from northern to central Israel. The fighting has killed over 3,100 people in Lebanon, according to the Health Ministry, and more than 70 people in Israel.
After Israel's strike in Aalmat, some 40 kilometers (25 miles) north of Beirut, legislator Raed Berro denied that any Hezbollah personnel or assets were in the building hit: “Everyone can see, in front of cameras, that what is being pulled from under the rubble are women, children and elderly people who have nothing to do with weapons or rocket warehouses.”
Hassan Ghaddaf, who lived next door and was lightly wounded while heading to his balcony with morning coffee, said displaced people were in the building.
“I had seen them and got to know them the other day,” Ghaddaf said. “They were peaceful. On the contrary, they had someone from the Lebanese Internal Security Forces that works for the state, and we saw their garb and clothes in the rubble.”
In Syria, an Israeli airstrike hit a residential building in the Damascus suburb of Sayyida Zeinab and the Defense Ministry said seven civilians were killed, state news agency SANA reported. Britain-based opposition war monitor The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights suggested Hezbollah was targeted. Israel did not immediately comment.
Fears of famine in northern Gaza
The mid-month deadline is approaching for the Biden administration's ultimatum for Israel: Allow more aid into Gaza or risk possible restrictions on U.S. military funding.
Israeli forces have encircled and largely isolated Jabaliya and the nearby northern Gaza towns of Beit Lahiya and Beit Hanoun for the past month, allowing only a trickle of humanitarian aid. Experts from a panel that monitors food security say famine is imminent or may already be happening.
The northern third of Gaza, including Gaza City, has suffered the heaviest destruction of the 13-month war. Israel has sent forces back in, saying Hamas has regrouped.
Israeli strikes often kill women and children. The military says it only targets militants, whom it accuses of hiding among civilians.
Also on Sunday, Israel's military released what it called footage of Hamas abusing detainees. The soundless footage, dated from 2018 to 2020, appears to show hooded detainees chained in stress positions. In some clips, men beat or poke them with batons. It was not possible to independently verify the videos, which the military said it recovered during operations in Gaza.
Rights groups have long accused the Hamas-run government in Gaza and the Western-backed Palestinian Authority in the occupied West Bank of abusing detainees and violently quashing dissent. Israel has been accused of similar abuses, especially since the start of the war. Israeli prison authorities say they follow relevant laws and investigate allegations of wrongdoing.
The toll of war
The war in Gaza began when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023 and killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted around 250. Some 100 hostages are still inside Gaza, about a third believed to be dead.
Israel's offensive has killed over 43,000 Palestinians, according to local health authorities who do not distinguish between civilians and militants in their count but say over half the dead were women and children.
Israeli bombardment and ground invasions have left vast areas of Gaza in ruins and displaced around 90% of the population of 2.3 million people, often multiple times. Hundreds of thousands live in tent camps with few if any services.
Cease-fire talks mediated by the United States, Qatar and Egypt have repeatedly stalled, as have parallel efforts by the U.S. and others to halt the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah.
Qatar, a key mediator with Hamas, said Saturday it had suspended its efforts and would resume them when “the parties show their willingness and seriousness to end the brutal war.”
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Magdy reported from Cairo and Chehayeb from Beirut. Associated Press writers Lujain Jo in Aalmat, Lebanon, and Melanie Lidman in Tel Aviv, Israel contributed to this report.
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Follow AP’s war coverage at
https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war
Israeli strikes kill dozens in Lebanon and northern Gaza
Associated Press
Sun, November 10, 2024 at 8:30 AM CST·5 min read
Hassan Ammar/AP
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — Israeli strikes killed dozens of people on Sunday in Lebanon and the northern Gaza Strip, where the military has been waging a major offensive for more than a month that aid groups say has further worsened the humanitarian crisis in the besieged enclave.
An Israeli airstrike killed at least 23 people in the village of Aalmat, north of Beirut and far from the areas in southern and eastern Lebanon where the militant Hezbollah group has a major presence. Lebanon’s Health Ministry said a further six people were wounded. There was no immediate Israeli comment.
In northern Gaza, an Israeli strike on a home sheltering displaced people in the urban refugee camp of Jabaliya killed at least 17 people, according to the director of a nearby hospital that received the bodies.
Dr. Fadel Naim, director of the Al-Ahly Hospital in Gaza City, said the dead include nine women, and that the toll was likely to rise as rescue efforts continue.
The Israeli military said it targeted a site where militants were operating in Jabaliya, without providing evidence. It said the details of the strike are under review.
A separate strike on Sunday hit a house in Gaza City, killing Wael al-Khour, a minister in the Hamas-run government, as well as his wife and three children, according to the Civil Defense, a first responders organization that operates under the government.
Israeli forces have encircled and largely isolated Jabaliya and the nearby towns of Beit Lahiya and Beit Hanoun for the past month, allowing in only a trickle of humanitarian aid. Hundreds of people have been killed since the offensive began on Oct. 6, and tens of thousands of people have fled to nearby Gaza City.
On Friday, experts from a panel that monitors food security said famine is imminent in the north or may already be happening. The growing desperation comes as the deadline approaches for an ultimatum the Biden administration gave Israel to raise the level of humanitarian assistance allowed into Gaza or risk possible restrictions on U.S. military funding.
The northern third of Gaza, including Gaza City, was the first target of Israel’s ground invasion and has suffered the heaviest destruction of the 13-month-old war, which was triggered by Hamas’ attack into southern Israel. As in other areas of Gaza, Israel has sent forces back in after repeated operations, saying Hamas has regrouped.
The military says it only targets militants, whom it accuses of hiding among civilians in homes and shelters. Israeli strikes often kill women and children.
On Sunday, the Israeli military released what it said was video footage of Hamas abusing detainees. The soundless footage, dated from 2018 to 2020, appears to show detainees with hoods over their heads chained up in stress positions. In some of the clips, men beat or poke them with batons.
It was not possible to independently verify the videos, which the military said it had recovered during operations in Gaza.
Rights groups have long accused the Hamas-run government in Gaza and the Western-backed Palestinian Authority in the occupied West Bank of abusing detainees and violently quashing dissent. Israel has been accused of similar abuses, especially since the start of the war. Israeli prison authorities say they follow relevant laws and investigate any allegations of wrongdoing.
Hezbollah began firing rockets, drones and missiles into Israel after war broke out in Gaza in solidarity with the Palestinians and its fellow Iran-backed militant group Hamas.
Israel retaliated, and a series of escalations over several months led to all-out war in September, when Israel carried out a wave of heavy strikes and killed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, as well as most of his top commanders.
Since then, Israel has struck areas deeper and deeper inside Lebanon, while Hezbollah has expanded its rocket fire from northern to central Israel. The fighting has killed over 3,000 people in Lebanon, according to the Health Ministry, and more than 70 people in Israel.
In videos purporting to show the aftermath of Sunday’s strike in Aalmat, some 40 kilometers (25 miles) north of Beirut, people were seen pulling the body of a little girl out of the rubble. The house had been flattened, and several cars nearby were also damaged.
The war in Gaza began when Hamas-led militants blew holes in the border fence and stormed into southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. They killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted around 250. Some 100 hostages are still inside Gaza, about a third of whom are believed to be dead.
Israel’s offensive has killed over 43,000 Palestinians, according to local health authorities who do not distinguish between civilians and militants in their count but say over half the fatalities were women and children.
Israeli bombardment and ground invasions have left vast areas of Gaza in ruins and displaced around 90% of the population of 2.3 million people, often multiple times. Hundreds of thousands of people are living in crowded tent camps with few if any public services and no idea of when they might return to their homes or rebuild.
Cease-fire talks mediated by the United States, Qatar and Egypt have repeatedly stalled since the start of the year, as have parallel efforts by the U.S. and others to halt the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah.
Qatar, which has served as a key mediator with Hamas, said over the weekend that it had suspended its efforts and would only resume them when “the parties show their willingness and seriousness to end the brutal war and the ongoing suffering of civilians.”
United Press International
Israeli airstrikes hit Gaza, Beirut, Tyre; reports: Qatar ends cease-fire mediation
Mike Heuer
Sat, November 9, 2024 at 4:56 PM CST·2 min read
UPI
Gazans inspect their damaged shelters following an Israeli airstrike inside the Al Aqsa Martyrs Hospital compound in Deir Al Balah, central Gaza Strip, on Saturday. Photo by Mohammed Saber/EPA-EFE
Nov. 9 (UPI) -- Israel Defense Forces carried out airstrikes in Gaza and Lebanon that killed dozens while targeting Hamas and Hezbollah militants Saturday morning.
While Israel's wars with Hamas and Hezbollah continue in Gaza and Lebanon, Qatar officials no longer will mediate a cease-fire deal on behalf of Hamas, NBC News reported. CNN and Fox News unnamed U.S. officials also confirmed the decision.
IDF airstrikes throughout much of Gaza began at dawn Saturday and killed at least 40, Al Jazeera reported.
Local officials and first-responders reported 40 Gazans killed during the airstrikes, including 24 in northern Gaza and others near Khan Younis, Beit Lahiya, Gaza City and Deir el-Balah.
The Palestinian Red Crescent confirmed 14 deaths, including women and children, while IDF officials said dozens of Hamas militants were killed in northern Gaza, VOA News reported.
An airstrike killed five and wounded 22 when Israeli aircraft struck the Fahad Al-Sabah school in Gaza City's Al-Tuffah district. The casualties were taken to the Al-Ahli Arab Hospital for treatment.
The IDF said its forces killed "dozens of terrorists" in northern Gaza's Jabalia area where a ground operation has been underway for more than a month to stop Hamas from regrouping in the area.
The IDF said it also killed militants in the Rafah area of southern Gaza while engaged in a two-front war with Hamas to the south and Hezbollah to the north in Lebanon.
The IDF carried out airstrikes in the southern suburbs of Beirut and in Tyre in Lebanon.
"Over the past day, the [Israel Air Force] struck over 50 targets in Lebanon and the Gaza Strip," the IDF said in a statement.
"Among the targets were military structures, weapons storage facilities and launchers," the IDF said.
The IDF targeted Hezbollah embedded its operations in residential and manufacturing centers in and near Beirut despite the resulting dangers to Lebanese citizens, the Jerusalem Post reported.
The IDF has targeted Hamas and Hezbollah militants during dozens of military actions begun Friday morning and continuing through the overnight hours and into Saturday.
Hamas recently rejected a cease-fire proposal mediated by Qatar.
Qatar officials notified Hamas, Israeli and U.S. officials regarding its decision to expel Hamas 10 days ago.
"Qatar has become increasingly frustrated with a lack of progress toward a cease-fire by both Hamas and Israel," one of the diplomats told NBC News Saturday morning.
"Hamas has been told that if this continues then Qatar cannot continue to host them."
The officials did not say whether Hamas was given a deadline.
Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani has played a key role in mediating talks between Hamas and Israel, alongside Egypt and the U.S., since the Oct. 7 war.
AFP
Deadly strikes on Gaza, Lebanon as Israel faces aid deadline
Pierre-Henry Deshayes with Aya Iskandarani in Beirut
Sun, November 10, 2024 at 10:44 AM CST·4 min read
Gaza's civil defence agency said a strike on a house killed at least 25 people in Jabalia (Omar AL-QATTAA)
Gaza's civil defence agency said a strike on a house killed at least 25 people in Jabalia (Omar AL-QATTAA) (Omar AL-QATTAA/AFP/AFP)
Israeli air strikes killed dozens of people in Lebanon and Gaza Sunday, rescuers and authorities said, ahead of a US deadline for improved aid delivery to the Palestinian territory.
Rescuers in the Gaza Strip said 13 children were among 30 people killed by Israeli strikes in the territory's north.
The first strike early Sunday hit a house in Jabalia, killing at least 25 people including 13 children and injuring more than 30, Gaza's civil defence agency said.
At around 6:00 am, "there was a very huge explosion" at the Alloush family home, said relative Abdullah al-Najjar.
"When we arrived here, all the bodies were torn apart," the distraught man added.
Vowing to stop Hamas militants from regrouping in already ravaged north Gaza, Israel on October 6 began a major air and ground assault.
The United Nations has described the area as "under siege", and Washington set a deadline of this coming week for Israel to get more aid in or face possible cuts to military assistance.
After the strike in Jabalia, Israel's military said it hit "infrastructure" in which militants were operating and "posed a threat" to troops in the area.
"Prior to the strike, numerous steps were taken to mitigate the risk of harming civilians," a military spokesman said.
Another strike on the Sabra neighbourhood of Gaza City killed five people, the civil defence agency said.
- US threat -
In Lebanon, the health ministry said an Israeli strike on the village of Almat north of Beirut killed 23 people including seven children.
"Under the rubble, there are only children, elderly men and women," Hezbollah lawmaker Raed Berro said at the scene, denying Israeli allegations that Hezbollah members or weapons were embedded among civilians.
The ministry reported at least another 12 dead in strikes on the Baalbek area in the east where Hezbollah has a strong presence.
In the south, Israeli strikes killed three Hezbollah-affiliated rescuers, the ministry said.
A war monitor also reported that an Israeli strike on an apartment belonging to Hezbollah south of Syria's capital Damascus killed seven people.
Since late September Israel has been engaged in a two-front war after turning its focus north towards Lebanon.
Israel admitted for the first time Sunday it was behind a wave of deadly attacks on Hezbollah communications devices in September.
Benjamin Netanyahu's spokesman said the Israeli prime minister "greenlighted the pager operation in Lebanon" in which hundreds of devices exploded.
The attacks killed nearly 40 people and wounded some 3,000 others, and preceded Israel's ongoing military operation in Lebanon.
Israel escalated air strikes and later sent in ground troops after almost a year of tit-for-tat exchanges of fire with Iran-backed Hezbollah. The Lebanese group said it was acting in support of Hamas.
The war in Gaza erupted with Hamas's October 7, 2023 attack on southern Israel which resulted in 1,206 deaths, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.
Israel's retaliatory campaign has killed 43,603 people in Gaza, according to figures from the Hamas-run territory's health ministry, which the UN considers reliable.
Israel's main military backer the United States on October 15 warned that it could withhold some of its billions of dollars in military assistance unless Israel improves aid delivery to the Gaza Strip within 30 days -- a deadline that expires on Wednesday.
- Qatar suspends mediation -
State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said at the time that top US officials made "clear" to Israel's government that changes need to be made "to see that the level of assistance making it into Gaza comes back up from the very, very low levels that it is at today".
The demand came before Tuesday's vote for President-elect Donald Trump, who has suggested he would give freer rein to Israel.
On Saturday, a UN-backed assessment warned that famine is imminent in northern Gaza.
Fewer aid shipments were allowed into Gaza than at any time since October 2023, according to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) report.
The alert from the Famine Review Committee warned of "an imminent and substantial likelihood of famine occurring, due to the rapidly deteriorating situation".
Israel's military questioned the report's credibility.
A military statement denounced "partial, biased data and superficial sources with vested interests".
The IPC says its process is "evidence-based" and ensures "a rigorous, neutral analysis".
The heads of UN agencies in early November described north Gaza as "under siege" and denied "basic aid and life-saving supplies".
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken hopes to use the remaining weeks of his term to press for an end to the Gaza and Lebanon wars, a spokesman said on Thursday, before fellow mediator Qatar said Saturday it had suspended its role in trying to broker a deal.
"Qatar would resume those efforts... when the parties show their willingness and seriousness," Doha's foreign ministry spokesman Majed Al-Ansari said in a statement.
burs-it/srm/ami
Associated Press
Qatar suspends its mediation efforts on Gaza and the Hamas office there may have to leave
WAFAA SHURAFA, SAMY MAGDY and MATTHEW LEE
Updated Sat, November 9, 2024 at 6:55 PM CST·6 min read
Palestinians gather at the site of an Israeli strike in the courtyard of the Al-Aqsa Hospital where displaced people live in tents, in Deir al-Balah, Gaza Strip, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
Palestinian citizens of Israel protest against Israel's military operations in the Gaza Strip and Lebanon, in Umm Al-Fahm, Israel, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Mahmoud Illean)Residents check the site of an Israeli airstrike in Dahiyeh, Beirut, Lebanon, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)People march in a protest in Tel Aviv, Israel, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024 against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government and call for the release of hostages held in the Gaza Strip by the Hamas militant group, marking 400 days since their capture. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)Palestinians gather at the site of an Israeli strike in the courtyard of the Al-Aqsa Hospital where displaced people live in tents, in Deir al-Balah, Gaza Strip, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)Palestinian citizens of Israel protest against Israel's military operations in the Gaza Strip and Lebanon, in Umm Al-Fahm, Israel, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Mahmoud Illean)Palestinian citizens of Israel protest against Israel's military operations in the Gaza Strip and Lebanon, in Umm Al-Fahm, Israel, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024. The placard in Arabic reads: "the head of the snake is America, Israel and Arab reactionaries." (AP Photo/Mahmoud Illean)A local resident stands next to debris inside his house after it was struck by projectiles fired from Lebanon in Kfar Yasif, north west Israel, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)Civil defense workers extinguish a fire as smoke rises from the site of an Israeli airstrike in Dahiyeh, Beirut, Lebanon, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)A resident checks the site of an Israeli airstrike in Tyre, southern Lebanon, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Mohammad Zaatari)Resident check the site of an Israeli airstrike in Tyre, southern Lebanon, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Mohammad Zaatari)People protest against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government in Tel Aviv, Israel, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024, and call for the release of hostages held in the Gaza Strip by the Hamas militant group, marking 400 days since their capture. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
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Palestinians gather at the site of an Israeli strike in the courtyard of the Al-Aqsa Hospital where displaced people live in tents, in Deir al-Balah, Gaza Strip, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)ASSOCIATED PRESS
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Qatar has suspended its key mediation efforts between Hamas and Israel, it said Saturday, after growing frustration with the lack of progress on a cease-fire deal for Gaza.
It wasn't immediately clear whether the remaining Hamas leadership hosted by Qatar must leave, or where it would go. Hamas has good relations with Iran and Turkey, and some of its leaders are now in Lebanon.
However, Qatar is highly likely to return to mediation efforts if both sides show “serious political willingness” to reach a deal, according to an official with Egypt, the other key mediator.
Qatar told Israel and Hamas it can't continue to mediate “as long as there is a refusal to negotiate a deal in good faith” and "as a consequence, the Hamas political office no longer serves its purpose” in Qatar, a diplomatic source briefed on the matter said. Qatar told Hamas it will have to leave if it isn't ready to engage in serious negotiations, the source said.
In Washington, a U.S. official said the Biden administration informed Qatar two weeks ago that the Hamas office's continued operation in Doha was no longer useful and the Hamas delegation should be expelled.
A senior U.S. official said that after Hamas rejected the last proposal for a cease-fire, Qatar accepted the advice and informed the Hamas delegation of the decision 10 days ago.
A senior Hamas official said they were aware of Qatar’s decision to suspend mediation efforts, “but no one told us to leave.” Hamas has repeatedly called for an end to the war and a full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza as a condition for any cease-fire deal. Israel seeks the return of all hostages taken in Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel and insists on a presence in Gaza.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue. The Israeli prime minister’s office had no comment.
Late Saturday, the state-run Qatar News Agency published comments attributed to Majed bin Mohammed al-Ansari, a Foreign Ministry spokesman, confirming that Doha informed parties in the talks 10 days ago that it “would stall its efforts to mediate between Hamas and Israel if an agreement was not reached in that round.”
“Qatar will resume those efforts with its partners when the parties show their willingness and seriousness to end the brutal war and the ongoing suffering of civilians," the report said.
There continued to be no end in sight to the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza and the Israel-Hezbollah war in Lebanon, where Israel’s military said it struck command centers and other militant infrastructure in Beirut’s southern suburbs and elsewhere. An Israeli airstrike on the southern port city of Tyre late Friday killed at least seven, officials and a resident said.
Hezbollah “should continue (the fight) and we will continue to back them up even if we lose our families, our homes, and end up in the dirt,” said one Beirut resident, Mohammed Mekdad, as people searched the smoking rubble.
In Gaza, Israeli strikes killed at least 16 people on Saturday, Palestinian medical officials said, while Israel announced the first delivery of humanitarian aid in weeks to the territory's hungry, devastated north.
One strike hit a school-turned-shelter in Gaza City’s eastern Tufah neighborhood, killing at least six people, the territory's Health Ministry said. Two local journalists, a pregnant woman and a child were among the dead, it said. Israel's army said the strike targeted a militant belonging to the Palestinian Islamic Jihad group, offering no evidence.
Another Israeli strike killed seven people, including two women and a child in the southern city of Khan Younis, according to Nasser Hospital. Israel's army didn't respond to a request for comment.
And an Israeli strike hit tents in the courtyard of central Gaza’s main hospital, killing at least three people and wounding a local journalist, Al-Aqsa Martyrs hospital in Deir al-Balah said. It was the eighth Israeli attack on the compound since March.
Israel says aid trucks reach northern Gaza
The Israeli military body in charge of humanitarian aid to Gaza, COGAT, said 11 aid trucks containing food, water and medical equipment reached the enclave's far north on Thursday. It's the first time any aid has reached there since Israel began a new military campaign last month.
But not all the aid reached the agreed drop-off points, according to the the U.N. World Food Program. In the urban refugee camp of Jabaliya, Israeli troops stopped one convoy bound for nearby Beit Lahiya and ordered the supplies to be offloaded, WFP spokesperson Alia Zaki said.
Israel’s offensive has focused on Jabaliya, where Israel says Hamas had regrouped. Other areas affected include Beit Lahiya and Beit Hanoun just north of Gaza City.
U.S. deadline is looming for Israel
The aid announcement came days before a U.S. deadline demanding that Israel improve aid deliveries across Gaza or risk losing access to U.S. weapons funding. The U.S. says Israel must allow a minimum of 350 trucks a day carrying food and other supplies.
A report by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, or IPC, issued Thursday said there's a strong likelihood that famine is imminent in parts of northern Gaza, the territory's most isolated area.
COGAT rejected those findings and said the report relied “on partial, biased data and superficial sources with vested interests.”
No emergency services functioning north of Gaza City
The U.N. estimates that tens of thousands of people remain in northern Gaza. Earlier this week, the Health Ministry said there were no ambulances or emergency crews operating north of Gaza City.
The conflict has left 90% of Palestinians in Gaza displaced, according to U.N. figures.
More than a year of war in Gaza has killed more than 43,000 people, Palestinian health officials say. They don't distinguish between civilians and combatants, but say more than half of those killed were women and children.
The war began after Palestinian militants stormed into Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing around 1,200 people — mostly civilians — and abducting 250 others. Some 100 hostages are still inside Gaza, about a third believed to be dead.
“It has been 400 days and the hostages are still in Gaza. There is a war without a direction. It’s so sad,” said Eial Tiskim, who attended the latest protest in Tel Aviv on Saturday night to demand a cease-fire deal.
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Magdy reported from Cairo and Lee from Washington. Associated Press writer Jack Jeffery contributed to this report from Ramallah, West Bank.
___
Follow AP’s war coverage at
https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war
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