VIDEO: US envoy Witkoff meets with Netanyahu in 'Israel'
Witkoff met 'Israeli' Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to discuss efforts to increase humanitarian aid and consider potential next steps, including a ceasefire. According to 'Israeli' media, the envoy may also visit a US-supported organization involved in food distribution inside Gaza.
His visit comes after another bloody night in northern Gaza, where dozens of Palestinians were reportedly killed when Israeli Occupation troops opened fire near a humanitarian aid convoy. Gaza's civil defence agency said at least 58 people were killed when soldiers fired into a crowd that had swarmed trucks near the Zikim checkpoint.
Jameel Ashour, a mourner at Gaza's Al-Shifa hospital, said chaos broke out when people saw looters snatching food supplies.
'When people saw thieves stealing and dropping food, the hungry crowd rushed in hopes of getting some,' Ashour told Agence France-Presse (AFP).
The Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) confirmed it had fired 'warning shots' near the convoy but said it had no information on fatalities. An AFP reporter documented the scene at the morgue, where bullet-ridden bodies were laid out.
- Humanitarian tensions -
The situation in Gaza has deteriorated rapidly, with UN-backed reports confirming that 'famine is now unfolding.' Images of malnourished children and mass hunger have fueled international calls for a ceasefire and greater aid access.
Despite being one of 'Israel's' most vocal defenders, Trump has acknowledged the growing humanitarian disaster. Earlier this week, he publicly committed to boosting US aid shipments, warning that Gaza faces 'real starvation,' a remark that appeared to contradict Netanyahu, who continues to dismiss reports of widespread hunger.
In a Truth Social post on Thursday, Trump doubled down on his support for 'Israel' but blamed the crisis on Hamas.
'The fastest way to end the Humanitarian Crises in Gaza is for Hamas to SURRENDER AND RELEASE THE HOSTAGES!!!' he wrote.
Meanwhile, ceasefire negotiations remain at a standstill after both 'Israeli' and US teams withdrew from indirect talks in Doha last week. Witkoff has led Washington's involvement in those discussions.
- Rising global frustration -
Canada this week became the latest Western government to signal support for recognizing a Palestinian state, following similar statements from France and the United Kingdom. Prime Minister Mark Carney warned that 'no room for delay' remains as Gaza's civilian suffering deepens.
'Israel' rejected Canada's move, calling it part of a 'distorted campaign of international pressure.' Trump also criticized Ottawa, warning that such decisions could affect trade negotiations with Washington.
Germany has joined the chorus of concern. Johann Wadephul, a senior German envoy, landed in Jerusalem on Thursday for meetings with Netanyahu and Foreign Minister Gideon Saar.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Roya News
3 hours ago
- Roya News
White House says Trump open to meeting Putin and Zelensky
Donald Trump could meet as early as next week with Vladimir Putin following what the US president described as "highly productive" talks in Moscow between his special envoy and the Russian leader. The potential summit was discussed in a call between Trump and Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky that, according to a senior source in Kyiv, included NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte and the leaders of Britain, Germany and Finland. "The Russians expressed their desire to meet with President Trump, and the president is open to meeting with both President Putin and President Zelensky," said White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt. "President Trump wants this brutal war to end." The New York Times and CNN, citing people familar with the plan, said Trump plans to sit down with Putin as early as next week, and then wants a three-way meeting with the Russian leader and Zelensky. The phone call came after US envoy Steve Witkoff met Russian leadership in Moscow earlier in the day for talks described by the Kremlin as "productive" -- with Trump's deadline looming to impose fresh sanctions over Russia's war in Ukraine. "Great progress was made!" Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform, adding that afterward he had briefed some European allies. "Everyone agrees this War must come to a close, and we will work towards that in the days and weeks to come," he said. Minutes later, however, a senior US official said that "secondary sanctions" were still expected to be implemented in two days' time. Trump, who had boasted he could end the conflict within 24 hours of taking office, has given Russia until Friday to make progress towards peace or face new penalties. Three rounds of Russia-Ukraine talks in Istanbul have failed to make headway on a ceasefire, with the two sides far apart in their demands. Russia has escalated drone and missile attacks against its pro-Western neighbour to a record high and accelerated its advance on the ground. "A quite useful and constructive conversation took place," Putin's aide Yuri Ushakov told journalists, including AFP, after the three-hour meeting with Witkoff. The two men exchanged "signals" on their positions, Ushakov said, without elaborating. Zelensky confirmed his call with Trump and confirmed European leaders had taken part, although he didn't name them. Sanctions threat Trump has voiced increasing frustration with Putin in recent weeks over Russia's unrelenting offensive. The White House has not officially outlined what action it would take against Russia, but Trump has previously threatened to impose "secondary tariffs" targeting Russia's key trade partners, such as China and India. On Wednesday Trump ordered steeper tariffs on Indian goods over New Delhi's continued purchase of Russian oil. The move would aim to stifle Russian exports, but would risk significant international disruption. Trump said Tuesday he would await the outcome of the Moscow talks before ordering any economic sanctions. "We're going to see what happens," he told reporters. "We'll make that determination at that time." Without explicitly naming Trump, the Kremlin on Tuesday slammed "threats" to hike tariffs on Russia's trading partners as "illegitimate." Russia's campaign against Ukraine since February 2022 has killed tens of thousands of people, destroyed swathes of the country and forced millions to flee their homes. Moscow has demanded that Ukraine cede more territory and renounce Western support if it wants the fighting to stop. Kyiv is calling for an immediate ceasefire, and Zelensky last week urged his allies to push for "regime change" in Moscow. Nuclear rhetoric The Witkoff visit came as Moscow-Washington tensions are running high. Trump said he had ordered two nuclear submarines to be moved following an online row with former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev, and that they were now "in the region." Moscow then said that it was ending a self-imposed moratorium on nuclear-capable intermediate-range missiles, suggesting that it could deploy such weapons in response to what it alleged were similar US deployments within striking distance of Russia.
Roya News
3 hours ago
- Roya News
Trump says 'good chance' of meeting with Putin 'very soon'
Donald Trump said Wednesday he could meet with Vladimir Putin "very soon," following what the US president described as highly productive talks in Moscow between his special envoy and the Russian leader. The potential summit was discussed in a call between Trump and Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky that, according to a senior source in Kyiv, included NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte and the leaders of Britain, Germany and Finland. "There's a good chance that there will be a meeting very soon," Trump told reporters at the White House, when asked when he would meet the Ukrainian and Russian leaders. He gave no indication where the meeting with Putin might take place. The New York Times and CNN, citing people familiar with the plan, said Trump plans to sit down with Putin as early as next week, and then wants a three-way meeting with the Russian leader and Zelensky. Trump's phone call with Zelensky came after US envoy Steve Witkoff met Russian leadership in Moscow earlier in the day for talks described by the Kremlin as "productive" -- with Trump's deadline looming to impose fresh sanctions over Russia's war in Ukraine. "Great progress was made!" Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform, adding that afterward he had briefed some European allies. "Everyone agrees this War must come to a close, and we will work towards that in the days and weeks to come," he said. Minutes later, however, a senior US official said that "secondary sanctions" were still expected to be implemented in two days' time. Trump, who had boasted he could end the conflict within 24 hours of taking office, has given Russia until Friday to make progress towards peace or face new penalties. Three rounds of Russia-Ukraine talks in Istanbul have failed to make headway on a ceasefire, with the two sides far apart in their demands. Russia has escalated drone and missile attacks against its neighbor, a US and European Union ally, to a record high and accelerated its advance on the ground. "A quite useful and constructive conversation took place," Putin's aide Yuri Ushakov told journalists, including AFP, after the three-hour meeting with Witkoff. The two men exchanged "signals" on their positions, Ushakov said, without elaborating.
Roya News
6 hours ago
- Roya News
Microsoft helping 'Israel' with surveillance to attack Palestinians: report
A joint investigation by The Guardian, +972 Magazine, and Local Call has uncovered that 'Israel's' elite military intelligence Unit 8200 is utilizing Microsoft's Azure cloud platform for an extensive surveillance program, storing millions of Palestinian phone calls. This cloud-based system, operational since 2022, has significantly expanded 'Israel's' intelligence capabilities, raising serious human rights concerns . Unit 8200 reportedly sought Microsoft's assistance due to insufficient storage and computing power on its own servers, aiming to process "a million calls an hour". By July 2025, an estimated 11,500 terabytes of 'Israeli' military data, equivalent to approximately 200 million hours of audio, are projected to be housed on Microsoft's servers, primarily in the Netherlands. This marks a shift from monitoring "tens of thousands of suspects" to "millions of Palestinians" . Intelligence sources allege this data has been used to identify bombing targets in Gaza and for coercive purposes, including blackmail and justifying arrests in the West Bank. The collaboration, initiated after a late 2021 meeting between Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and then-Unit 8200 Commander Sariel, was viewed internally by Microsoft leadership as a "lucrative business opportunity". Despite Microsoft's public statements of finding "no evidence" its technology was used to harm Palestinians or aid civilian surveillance, leaked documents suggest Microsoft engineers were aware the data would include raw intelligence and audio files. The revelations have intensified protests from Microsoft employees, who have formed campaigns like "No Azure for Apartheid," demanding an end to the company's contracts with the 'Israeli' military.
