Hamas responds to Gaza truce proposal, says war must end
GAZA: Hamas responded to US-backed ceasefire proposals on Saturday, saying it had agreed to release 28 living and dead captives but restating its demand for an end to the war and a withdrawal of Zionist troops from Gaza. The Palestinian group said it would release 10 living captives and hand over the bodies of 18 dead in exchange for Palestinian prisoners and detainees held in Zionist prisons.
A Hamas official described the group's response to the proposals from US President Donald Trump's special Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff as 'positive' but said it was seeking some amendments. 'This response aims to achieve a permanent ceasefire, a complete withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, and to ensure the flow of humanitarian aid to our people in the Strip,' Hamas said in a statement.
The proposals would see a 60-day truce and the exchange of 28 of the 58 hostages still held in Gaza for more than 1,200 Palestinian prisoners and detainees, along with the entry of humanitarian aid into the enclave. A Palestinian official familiar with the talks told Reuters that among amendments Hamas is seeking is the release of the hostages in three phases over the 60-day truce and more aid distribution in different areas. Hamas also wants guarantees the deal will lead to a permanent ceasefire, the official said.
Israel has previously rejected Hamas' conditions, instead demanding the complete disarmament of the group and its dismantling as a military and governing force, along with the return of all 58 remaining hostages. Trump said on Friday he believed a ceasefire agreement was close after the latest proposals, and the White House said on Thursday that the Zionist entity had agreed to the terms.
Hamas said on Friday that the Zionist response to the proposals, which has not been made public, was unacceptable but it had agreed to consider the plan due to a 'deep sense of responsibility toward our people'. US State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce declined to confirm a Hamas response or provide any details. But, in an interview with Fox News, she said the United States would not take Hamas at its word but wait to see its actions.
On Saturday, the Zionist military, which relaunched its air and ground campaign in March following a two-month truce, said it was continuing to hit targets in Gaza. The campaign has cleared large areas along the boundaries of the Gaza Strip, squeezing the population of more than 2 million into an ever narrower section along the coast and around the southern city of Khan Younis.
The United Nations said on Friday the situation in Gaza is the worst since the start of the war began 19 months ago, with the entire population facing the risk of famine despite a resumption of limited aid deliveries earlier this month. 'The aid that's being sent now makes a mockery of the mass tragedy unfolding under our watch,' Philippe Lazzarini, head of the main UN relief organization for Palestinians UNRWA, said in a message on the social media platform X.
Jens Laerke, a spokesman for the UN humanitarian agency OCHA, called Gaza 'the hungriest place on Earth'. 'It's the only defined area – a country or defined territory within a country – where you have the entire population at risk of famine. 100 percent of the population at risk of famine,' he said, rejecting claims to the contrary by Zionist authorities.
On Saturday, aid groups said dozens of World Food Program trucks carrying flour to Gaza bakeries had been hijacked by armed groups and subsequently looted by people desperate for food after weeks of mounting hunger. 'After nearly 80 days of a total blockade, communities are starving and they are no longer willing to watch food pass them by,' the WFP said in a statement.
Amjad Al-Shawa, head of an umbrella group representing Palestinian aid groups, said the dire situation was being exploited by armed groups which were attacking some of the aid convoys. He said hundreds more trucks were needed and accused the Zionist entity of a 'systematic policy of starvation'. – Agencies
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Kuwait Times
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Conditions in Gaza ‘catastrophic'
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It was not immediately clear how much of that aid reached those in need. It said some trucks and a World Food Program warehouse have also been looted by desperate, hungry people. UN officials have also criticized limitations on what kind of aid they can provide. '(Zionist) authorities have not allowed us to bring in a single ready-to-eat meal. The only food permitted has been flour for bakeries. Even if allowed in unlimited quantities, which it hasn't been, it wouldn't amount to a complete diet for anyone,' said Eri Kaneko, UN humanitarian affairs spokesperson. Some of recipients of GHF aid said the packages include some rice, flour, canned beans, pasta, olive oil, biscuits and sugar. Under a complex process, Zionist entity inspects and clears aid shipments, which are then transported to the Palestinian side of the Kerem Shalom crossing. There the aid is offloaded and then reloaded on to other trucks for transport to warehouses in Gaza. 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Defense Minister I Katz said Hamas must agree to a ceasefire proposal presented by US envoy Steve Witkoff or be destroyed, after the Palestinian militant group said the deal failed to satisfy its demands. 'The Hamas murderers will now be forced to choose: accept the terms of the 'Witkoff Deal' for the release of the hostages — or be annihilated.' Zionist entity has repeatedly said that the destruction of Hamas was a key aim of the war. Negotiations to end nearly 20 months of war in Gaza have so far failed to achieve a breakthrough, with Zionist entity resuming operations in March following a short-lived truce. In the United States, Trump told reporters 'they're very close to an agreement on Gaza', adding: 'We'll let you know about it during the day or maybe tomorrow.' Protest in Afghanistan Meanwhile, thousands of Afghans protested across the country on Friday against the bombardment in Gaza, responding to a nationwide call by the Taleban authorities. Large crowds gathered in several cities after Friday prayers waving Palestinian flags and burning pictures of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. 'We are out in support with Gaza. And to show the world that Gaza is not alone, we are standing with them. Wherever Muslims are oppressed, we strongly defend them and condemn it,' said 28-year-old Jannat, who goes by one name, in the capital Kabul. Taleban Prime Minister Hassan Akhund condemned Zionist actions in Gaza, labeling them a 'genocide' and expressing growing concern over the escalating violence against Palestinian civilians. — AFP
Kuwait Times
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Tesla executives question Musk after he denied killing $25,000 EV project
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Kuwait Times
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Zimbabwe's farmers push on as land grab compensation flounders
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