Gaza ceasefire hopes revived, as Marles stresses no arms trade with Israel
Ceasefire efforts appeared to be reviving following Israel's announcement, with US special envoy Steve Witkoff preparing to meet Qatar's prime minister in Spain on Sunday AEST to discuss a new proposal to end the war, according to two officials familiar with the talks, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak with the media.
Mediators Egypt and Qatar were preparing a new ceasefire framework that would include the release of all hostages – dead and alive – in one go, in return for the war's end and the withdrawal of Israeli forces, two Arab officials told The Associated Press.
Hostages' families pressured Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government over the weekend amid new fears for the 50 remaining hostages, with 20 of them thought to be alive and struggling.
Einav Zangauker, whose son Matan is held in Gaza, called on Israelis to 'help us save the hostages, the soldiers and the state of Israel'.
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A joint statement by nine countries, including Australia, Germany, Britain, France and Canada, said they 'strongly reject' Israel's decision for the large-scale military operation, saying it would worsen the 'catastrophic humanitarian situation', endanger hostages and further risk mass displacement. They said any attempts at annexation or settlement in Gaza violated international law.
A separate statement by more than 20 countries, including ceasefire mediators Egypt and Qatar along with Saudi Arabia, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates, called Israel's decision a 'dangerous and unacceptable escalation'.
Russia said Israel's plan would aggravate the 'already extremely dramatic situation' in Gaza.
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Perth Now
28 minutes ago
- Perth Now
Netanyahu says new Gaza offensive will start soon
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he expects to complete a new Gaza offensive "fairly quickly", as the UN Security Council heard new demands for an end to suffering in the Palestinian enclave. Netanyahu, speaking after his security cabinet on Friday approved a much-criticised plan to take control of Gaza City said he had no choice but to "complete the job" and defeat Hamas to free hostages seized from Israel. He said the new Gaza offensive aimed to tackle two remaining Hamas strongholds in what he said was his only option because of the Palestinian group's refusal to lay down its arms. Hamas says it will not disarm unless an independent Palestinian state is established. It was not clear when the offensive, which would be the latest in successive attempts by the Israeli military to clear the militants from Gaza City, would begin. "The timeline that we set for the action is fairly quickly. We want, first of all, to enable safe zones to be established so the civilian population of Gaza City can move out," he said on Sunday. The city, home to a million people before the two-year-old war, would be moved into "safe zones", he said. Palestinians say these have not protected them from Israeli fire in the past. Israel's military chief has voiced opposition to occupying the entire Gaza Strip and has warned that expanding the offensive could endanger the lives of hostages Hamas is still holding and draw its troops into protracted and deadly guerrilla warfare. Netanyahu said his goal was not to occupy Gaza. "We want a security belt right next to our border, but we don't want to stay in Gaza. That's not our purpose," he said. European representatives at the United Nations said famine was unfolding in Gaza and Israel's plan would only make things worse. "Expanding military operations will only endanger the lives of all civilians in Gaza, including the remaining hostages, and result in further unnecessary suffering," Denmark, France, Greece, Slovenia and the United Kingdom said in a joint statement. "This is a man-made crisis, and therefore urgent action is needed to halt starvation and to surge aid into Gaza," they said. Malnutrition is widespread in the enclave due to what international aid agencies say is a deliberate plan by Israel to restrict aid. Israel rejects that allegation, blaming Hamas for the hunger among Palestinians and saying a lot of aid has been distributed. The US representative at the Security Council defended Netanhayu and said Washington was committed to addressing humanitarian needs, freeing the hostages and achieving peace. Netanyahu said Israel was working with Washington on creating a surge of aid into Gaza, including by land. Five more people, including two children, died of malnutrition and starvation in Gaza in the past 24 hours, Gaza's health ministry said, taking the number of deaths from such causes to 217, including 100 children. The Hamas-run Gaza government media office said a further 23 people had been killed so far in the war by airdrops of aid which countries have resorted to due to the difficulties of getting aid in by road. In the latest case, a parachuted aid box killed a 14-year-old boy awaiting food with other desperate Palestinians at a tent encampment in central Gaza, according to medics and video verified by Reuters. "We have repeatedly warned of the dangers of these inhumane methods and have consistently called for the safe and sufficient delivery of aid through land crossings, especially food, infant formula, medicines, and medical supplies," it said. Italy said Israel should heed its own army's warnings before sending more troops into Gaza, where the Israeli military already holds large parts of the territory. "The invasion of Gaza risks turning into a Vietnam for Israeli soldiers," Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said in an interview with daily Il Messaggero. The war began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel and killed 1200 people and took 251 hostages. Israeli authorities say 20 of the remaining 50 hostages in Gaza are alive. Israel's offensive since then has killed more than 61,000 Palestinians, according to health officials, and left much of the territory in ruins.
News.com.au
an hour ago
- News.com.au
Israel's Gaza plan risks 'another calamity,' UN official warns
A UN official on Sunday warned the Security Council that Israel's plans to control Gaza City risked "another calamity" with far-reaching consequences, as Benjamin Netanyahu insisted his goal was not to occupy the territory. The United Nations Security Council held a rare emergency weekend meeting after Israel said its military would "take control" of Gaza City in a plan approved by Prime Minister Netanyahu's security cabinet that sparked a wave of global criticism. "If these plans are implemented, they will likely trigger another calamity in Gaza, reverberating across the region and causing further forced displacement, killings, and destruction," UN Assistant Secretary General Miroslav Jenca told the Security Council. The UN's humanitarian office OCHA said 98 children had died from acute malnutrition since the start of the conflict in October 2023, with 37 of those deaths since July, according to Gaza's authorities. "This is no longer a looming hunger crisis -- this is starvation, pure and simple," said OCHA's coordination director Ramesh Rajasingham. Palestinian ambassador to the UN Riyad Mansour said Sunday "over two million victims are enduring unbearable agony," calling Israel's plans for Gaza City "illegal and immoral," and for foreign journalists to be allowed into Gaza. Netanyahu announced on Sunday a plan to allow more foreign journalists to report inside Gaza -- accompanied by the Israeli military. - Sanctions calls - Britain, a close ally of Israel which nonetheless pushed for an emergency meeting on the crisis, warned the Israeli plan risked prolonging the conflict. "It will only deepen the suffering of Palestinian civilians in Gaza. This is not a path to resolution. It is a path to more bloodshed," said British deputy ambassador to the UN James Kariuki. But Netanyahu said Sunday his country was "talking in terms of a fairly short timetable because we want to bring the war to an end," as he insisted Israel did not want to occupy Gaza. Outside the meeting at UN headquarters in New York, a small but noisy protest calling for an end to the conflict was met by a large police presence. The United States, a veto-wielding permanent member of the Security Council, accused those nations who supported Sunday's meeting of "actively prolonging the war by spreading lies about Israel." "Israel has a right to decide what is necessary for its security and what measure measures are appropriate to end the threat posed by Hamas," said US envoy to the UN Dorothy Shea. Israel's deputy ambassador to the UN Jonathan Miller said "pressure should not be placed on Israel, who suffered the most horrific attack against the Jewish people since the Holocaust, but on Hamas." Algeria's ambassador Amar Bendjama called for sanctions on Israel in response to its Gaza City plan. "The hour has come to impose sanctions on the enemy of humanity," he said. "If it was another country, you would have been imposing sanctions a long time ago," the Palestinian envoy Mansour said.
News.com.au
2 hours ago
- News.com.au
Israel PM says new plan for Gaza 'best way to end the war'
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday that his new plan to expand the war and take control of Gaza City was "the best way to end the war", defying growing calls to stop the fighting. Defending his plan in a press conference in Jerusalem, the premier said the new operation would be implemented on "a fairly short timetable because we want to bring the war to an end". More than 22 months into the war, sparked by Hamas's unprecedented attack on Israel, the country is gripped by a yawning divide pitting those demanding an end to the conflict and a deal for the release of the hostages against others who want to see the Palestinian militants vanquished once and for all. Criticism both at home and abroad has only intensified after Netanyahu's security cabinet announced plans Friday to expand the conflict and capture Gaza City. But Netanyahu was defiant on Sunday, telling journalists gathered for a rare press conference: "This is the best way to end the war, and the best way to end it speedily." "I don't want to talk about exact timetables, but we're talking in terms of a fairly short timetable because we want to bring the war to an end," he added. The premier said the new operation's aim was "to dismantle the two remaining Hamas strongholds in Gaza City and the central camps", while establishing secure corridors and safe zones to allow civilians to leave the area. "Israel has no choice but to finish the job and complete the defeat of Hamas. Now we've done a great deal. We have about 70 to 75 percent of Gaza under Israeli control, military control," he said. "But we have two remaining strongholds, OK? These are Gaza City and the central camps in Al Mawasi." - 'Just another plan' - The press conference came ahead of a UN Security Council meeting called to discuss the situation in Gaza and the new Israeli plan. It also came a day after thousands of people took to the streets in Tel Aviv to protest the security cabinet's decision. "The new plan is just another plan that is gonna fail, and it could very well be the end of our hostages, and of course, it will take probably more lives of our soldiers," protester Joel Obodov told AFP. The premier has faced regular protests over the course of the war, with many rallies calling for the government to strike a ceasefire and hostage-release deal after past truces saw captives exchanged for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli custody. Netanyahu, however, has also come under pressure from the far right to go harder on Hamas, with Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich slamming the new plan as half-hearted. "They decided once again to repeat the same approach, embarking on a military operation that does not aim for a decisive resolution," Smotrich said in a video posted online. The far-right members of Netanyahu's cabinet, including Smotrich, have maintained considerable influence in the premier's coalition government throughout the war -- with their support seen as vital to holding at least 61 seats for a parliamentary majority. National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, also of the far right, told Kan radio on Sunday: "It is possible to achieve victory. I want all of Gaza, transfer and colonisation. This plan will not endanger the troops." - 'We will win' - Meanwhile, the cabinet's decision to expand the war in Gaza has touched off a wave of criticism across the globe. On Sunday, the UN Security Council met to discuss the latest development. "If these plans are implemented, they will likely trigger another calamity in Gaza, reverberating across the region and causing further forced displacement, killings and destruction," UN Assistant Secretary-General Miroslav Jenca told the Security Council. Foreign powers, including some of Israel's allies, have been pushing for a negotiated truce to secure the hostages' return and help alleviate a humanitarian crisis in the territory following repeated warnings of famine taking hold. Despite the backlash and rumours of dissent from Israeli military top brass, Netanyahu has remained firm. "We will win the war, with or without the support of others," he told the press on Sunday. "Our goal is not to occupy Gaza, but to establish a civilian administration in the Strip that is not affiliated with Hamas or the Palestinian Authority," he said. Out of 251 hostages captured during Hamas's 2023 attack, 49 are still being held in Gaza, including 27 the military says are dead. Israel's offensive has killed at least 61,430 Palestinians, according to Gaza's health ministry, figures the United Nations says are reliable. According to Gaza's civil defence agency, at least 27 people were killed by Israeli fire across the territory Sunday, including 11 who were waiting near aid distribution centres. Hamas's 2023 attack on Israel, which triggered the war, resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.
