Israel kills 50 in Gaza as calls for ceasefire mount
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Gaza's civil defence agency said Israeli forces killed at least 51 people, including 24 at a seafront rest area, as fresh calls grow for a ceasefire in the war-ravaged Palestinian territory.
The swift resolution of Israel's 12-day war with Iran has revived hopes for a halt to the fighting in Gaza, where more than 20 months of combat have created dire humanitarian conditions for the population of more than two million.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will visit the White House on July 7, a US official told AFP on condition of anonymity.
Gaza's civil defence agency said Israeli forces killed at least 51 people, including 24 at a seafront rest area, as fresh calls grow for a ceasefire in the war-ravaged Palestinian territory.
The swift resolution of Israel's 12-day war with Iran has revived hopes for a halt to the fighting in Gaza, where more than 20 months of combat have created dire humanitarian conditions for the population of more than two million.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will visit the White House on July 7, a US official told AFP on condition of anonymity.
Simultaneously, Israeli forces launched pre-dawn raids across the occupied West Bank, arresting at least 21 Palestinians. Detainees were taken from Hebron, Ramallah, Nablus, Jenin, and Bethlehem.
In Washington, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said US President Donald Trump is in constant communication with Israeli leadership and is committed to ending the war.
Read: US approves $510m sale of bomb guidance kits to Israel following Iran conflict
'It's heartbreaking to see the images that have come out from both Israel and Gaza... the president wants to see it end. He wants to save lives,' she told reporters.
Trump is set to host Netanyahu next Monday for talks at the White House, with discussions expected to cover Gaza, Iran, and regional security.
Israeli Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, a close aide to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, is in Washington this week for talks with senior US officials on regional diplomacy, Gaza, and the aftermath of Israel's 12-day conflict with Iran last month.
Earlier on Monday, nearly 40 people were killed in the deadliest single attack of the week, when an Israeli airstrike hit the al-Baqa café, a popular venue along Gaza City's coastal promenade.
The site had become one of the few remaining social gathering spaces in the besieged enclave.
Read more: US-dispatched flour bags laced with narcotics: Gazan authorities
Children were attending a birthday party at the time of the strike. Palestinian journalist Ismail Abu Hatab was also among the dead.
On Tuesday, an Israeli military spokesperson told AFP the incident was under review, adding: 'Prior to the strike, steps were taken to mitigate the risk of harming civilians using aerial surveillance.'
A UN report has named over 60 companies it alleges are involved in supporting Israeli settlements and military actions in Gaza, calling the conflict a "genocidal campaign."
Francesca Albanese, UN Special Rapporteur on the Occupied Palestinian Territories, compiled the report after receiving over 200 submissions from states, companies, academics, and rights groups.
'While life in Gaza is being obliterated... this report shows why Israel's genocide continues: because it is lucrative for many,' Albanese wrote. She accused firms of being 'financially bound to Israel's apartheid and militarism.'
The report calls for legal accountability for executives and demands companies cease all dealings with Israel linked to the military campaign.
Israel's war on Gaza
Despite international calls for a ceasefire, the Israeli army has killed more than 56,500 Palestinians in a deadly onslaught in the Gaza Strip since October 2023.
Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.
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Express Tribune
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Pivoting between geopolitics and geo-economics
Listen to article When Field Marshal Asim Munir walked out of the White House after the recent luncheon with President Trump, it was apparent that the Pak-US relationship was taking another tactical shift. This relationship has seen numerous highs and lows in the past. However, the recent war-like situation between Pakistan and India and President Donald Trump's role in the ceasefire have unfolded events unexpectedly. Lately, Pakistan seems to have navigated its relations well with both the US and China. The country now stands at a crossroads: whether to continue with a familiar path of transactional geopolitics or commit to geo-economics as mentioned in the National Security Policy (2022-2026). Not long ago, Pakistan was almost written off for its strategic importance by the policymakers in Washington, DC, after the fall of Kabul. From being a close ally, Pakistan had overnight become almost insignificant for the Biden administration to give a call back to the Pakistani authorities or even to get a mention in the US's National Security Strategy. So much so that Pakistan had to go through tougher conditions while seeking bailout packages from the IMF and was subject to harsher rhetoric. Nevertheless, the situation has changed significantly after the Indo-Pak military clash of May 2025. On April 22, 2025, a terrorist incident resulted in 26 tourists losing their lives in Pahalgam. Reports also claim that this attack was religiously motivated. Such a tragedy deserves utmost condemnation, and those responsible must be punished for their brutal actions. India's knee-jerk response was that Pakistan was somehow behind this attack, and therefore, the decades-long Indus Water Treaty, which had survived through the worst of the Indo-Pak relations, was suspended. Subsequently, India also launched a series of attacks on several Pakistani cities on the pretext of targeting the terrorist hideouts only. For the next two days, the situation between India and Pakistan remained extremely tense. Both attacked each other's multiple military facilities and neutralised drone incursions, while Pakistan, with the help of Chinese technology, downed multiple Indian fighter jets. Eventually, mediated by the US, both countries reached a ceasefire agreement, but the threat still looms as PM Modi has insisted that Operation Sindoor will continue if there is any other terrorist attack in India. Whether keeping South Asian peace a hostage with such statements is good or bad, one thing is clear: after the ceasefire, Pakistan's profile on the international political front has witnessed a significant rise, something totally against New Delhi's policy of isolating Pakistan internationally. Post-ceasefire, Pakistan's relations with China have reached new highs. For Pakistan, China has emerged as one dependable partner. China, on the other hand, fully supported Pakistan's retaliation against Indian attacks. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi reiterated that Pakistan is an "ironclad friend" and vowed to deepen the "all-weather strategic cooperative partnership." It must also be noted that the use of Chinese defence technology appeared as free marketing, since after the ceasefire, China's defense stocks have surged. Presently, what still remains a matter of concern for both is the security of Chinese personnel and investments in CPEC. Pakistan, therefore, must ameliorate threats from sub-nationalist movements. Pakistan's relations with the US have also taken a stark turnabout. President Trump has taken the credit for the ceasefire a number of times, although India, the US's most allied ally in South Asia, has refuted such claims repeatedly. He then offered to mediate for the long-overdue Kashmir issue, again upsetting India. And lately, the US Department of State issued a travel advisory to "exercise increased caution in India due to crime and terrorism." All these developments, along with President Trump's invitation to Field Marshal Asim Munir, have left the Indian side quite disgruntled. Many argue that the lunch meeting was also crucial because of the Israel-Iran conflict, but whatever the reason may be, Pakistan must be in a state of euphoria over these happenings. One must also recall that Pakistan has served as US strategic partner in the past. During the Cold War, Pakistan was an active member of the capitalist camp against communism in South Asia; it played a crucial role against the Soviet Union's invasion of Afghanistan; and it was the US strategic partner during the war on terror. But as denoted appropriately, the Pak-US relationship has remained 'transactional' in nature, and Pakistan has repeatedly complained of being abandoned as soon as US interests change. Following the same pattern, Pakistan was cast off after the fall of Kabul in 2021, too. Hence, it must remain wary in the future as well. Considering the post-ceasefire events, Pakistan may again be lured to find solutions to its internal and external crises in forming strategic partnerships, especially with the US. Previously, Pakistan has leveraged its geographical location for geopolitical gains, but apart from temporary relief, it has only guided towards much deep-rooted problems. The country gravely suffers from growing poverty, economic inequality, policy discontinuity, unemployment, poor education and healthcare facilities, etc. The current situation presents Pakistan with a dilemma: whether it would keep using its strategic advantage for temporary gains or realise the vision of geo-economics that the country's National Security Policy introduced in January 2022. 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EU says ready to facilitate return to Iran nuclear talks
BRUSSELS: The EU's top diplomat told Iran's foreign minister Tuesday that Brussels is willing to facilitate a return to negotiations on Iran's nuclear programme after US and Israeli strikes. 'Negotiations on Iran's nuclear programme should restart as soon as possible' and 'cooperation' with the International Atomic Energy Agency must resume, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas wrote on X after a phone call with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi. 'The EU is ready to facilitate this.' Kallas further warned Tehran that 'any threats to pull out of the non-proliferation treaty don't help to lower tensions.' Iran says to submit own nuclear proposal to US soon The call came after Aragchi ruled out a out a quick resumption of talks with the United States and said Tehran will first need assurances it will not be attacked again. The United States and Iran were holding nuclear talks when Israel hit Iranian nuclear sites and military infrastructure. The United States joined the assault by bombing three nuclear sites – Fordo, Natanz and Isfahan – on June 21. The EU has long sought to play a mediation role with Iran. The 27-nation bloc was a signatory – and facilitator – of a 2015 deal between Iran and international powers over Tehran's nuclear programme. US President Donald Trump abandoned that deal in 2018.
