Latest news with #CeasefireTalks
Free Malaysia Today
28-05-2025
- General
- Free Malaysia Today
Israel airstrike kills at least 24 in Gaza
Medics said the latest strike wounded dozens of other people and set several tents ablaze. (AP pic) CAIRO : An Israeli airstrike killed at least 24 Palestinians in a tent encampment housing displaced families in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, local health authorities said on Sunday, as mediators hosted a new round of talks between Israel and Hamas. Israel expanded its military offensive in the enclave and ramped up bombing that has killed hundreds of people over the past 72 hours. Medics said the latest strike that also killed women and children, wounded dozens of other people and set several tents ablaze. The Gaza health ministry said Israeli strikes in the past few days had killed hundreds of Palestinians despite a visit by US President Donald Trump to the region. Hamas described the strike as a 'new brutal crime' in a statement on Sunday and blamed the US administration for the escalation. The Israeli military did not immediately comment on the latest strikes but it said in an earlier statement that it was conducting extensive strikes in areas of Gaza as part of its plan to reach its war objectives. Egypt and Qatar mediators, backed by the US, began a new round of indirect ceasefire talks between Israel and Hamas on Saturday, officials from both sides said. Sources close to the negotiation told Reuters there has been no breakthrough reported in the talks in the Qatari capital, Doha, as each of the sides remained committed to its stance.
Free Malaysia Today
18-05-2025
- Politics
- Free Malaysia Today
Strikes kill at least 100 Palestinians in Gaza as negotiators seek truce
One of Israel's overnight strikes hit a tent encampment housing displaced families in Khan Younis. (AP pic) CAIRO : Israeli airstrikes killed at least 100 Palestinians across the Gaza Strip overnight, local health authorities said today, as mediators hosted a new round of ceasefire talks between Israel and Hamas. There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military, which has expanded its strikes on the enclave, killing hundreds of people since Thursday, in preparation for a new ground offensive to achieve 'operational control' in parts of Gaza. 'We have at least 100 martyrs since overnight. Complete families were wiped off the civil registration record by Israeli bombardment,' Khalil Al-Deqran, Gaza health ministry spokesman, told Reuters by phone. Israel has blocked the entry of medical, food and fuel supplies into Gaza since the start of March to try to pressure Hamas into freeing Israeli hostages and has approved plans that could involve seizing the entire Gaza Strip and controlling aid. Hamas says it will only free the hostages in return for an Israeli ceasefire. Mediators Egypt and Qatar, backed by the US, began a new round of indirect ceasefire talks between the two sides yesterday, but sources close to the negotiations told Reuters there had been no breakthrough. Britain's Sky News Arabica and the BBC both reported overnight that Hamas had proposed releasing about half its Israeli hostages in exchange for a two-month ceasefire and the release of Palestinian prisoners held by Israel. Contacted by Reuters, a Hamas official said: 'Israel's position is unchanged, they want their prisoners released, without a commitment to end the war'. Potentially complicating the ceasefire talks further, reports in Israeli and Arab media said Hamas leader Mohammed Sinwar may have been killed. Hamas neither confirmed nor denied the reports. Israel's defence ministry had no immediate comment. In Israel, Einav Zangauker, the mother of Hamas hostage Matan Zangauker, said prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu was refusing to end the war in exchange for Hamas releasing the remaining hostages because of his political interests. 'The Israeli government still insists on only partial deals. They are deliberately tormenting us. Bring our children back already! All 58 of them,' Zangauker said in a post on the X social media platform. Tents ablaze The Israeli military's campaign across the Gaza Strip has devastated the Palestinian enclave. (AP pic) One of Israel's overnight strikes hit a tent encampment housing displaced families in Khan Younis in southern Gaza, killing women and children, wounding dozens and setting several tents ablaze. Hamas described the strike as a 'new brutal crime' and blamed the US administration for the escalation. Among the dozens killed earlier today were five journalists, some with their families. Zakaria Al-Sinwar, the brother of the Hamas leader, and three of his children were killed in an Israeli airstrike on their tent in central Gaza, medics said. He was a history lecturer at a Gaza university. Both men are the brothers of former Hamas chief Yehya Al-Sinwar, who was killed by Israel last October. Gaza's healthcare system is barely operational because of repeated Israeli bombardment and raids on hospitals. The blockade on aid supplies has compounded its difficulties, and worsened widespread hunger, for which Israel blames Hamas. 'Hospitals are overwhelmed with a growing number of casualties, many are children,' Deqran said. Later today, the Gaza health ministry said the Indonesian Hospital, one of the largest partially functioning medical facilities in north Gaza, had ceased operating because of Israeli fire near and at the vicinity. The Israeli military had no immediate comment. Staff at Shifa Hospital, Gaza's largest, urged people to donate blood because of the overwhelming number of casualties. Hospital officials said they received 40 dead and dozens of wounded overnight because of the continued Israeli strikes. The Palestinian civil emergency service said 75% of its ambulances had stopped operating because of fuel shortages amid Israel's ban on imports. It warned that unless fuel is allowed back within 72 hours all vehicles may stop. Israel's declared goal in Gaza is the elimination of the military and governmental capabilities of Hamas, which attacked Israeli communities on Oct 7, 2023, killing about 1,200 people and seizing about 250 hostages. The Israeli military campaign has devastated the enclave, pushing nearly all residents from their homes and killing more than 53,000 people, according to Gaza health authorities.
The Guardian
08-05-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
Trump news at a glance: Vance says Russia not being realistic on Ukraine, Trump says he may be right
Speaking at a security conference on Wednesday, the US vice-president, JD Vance, said of fruitless efforts to end the war in Ukraine: 'Right now, the Russians are asking for a certain set of requirements, a certain set of concessions in order to end the conflict. We think they're asking for too much.' Asked about the comments later on Wednesday, Donald Trump said: 'It's possible that's right.' Separately, Trump has nominated the wellness influencer Dr Casey Means for surgeon general after withdrawing his initial pick for the influential health post – Janette Nesheiwat, a former Fox News medical contributor. Means is linked to Trump's vaccine sceptic health secretary, Robert F Kennedy Jr, though she has mostly steered clear of his views on vaccination. Here are the key stories at a glance: JD Vance has said that Russia is asking for 'too much' in its negotiations with Ukraine in the latest sign of growing frustration from Washington with ceasefire talks to end the war between the two countries. During his remarks, Vance reiterated the threat that the White House would 'walk away if [Trump] thinks he's not making progress'. Read the full story The Federal Reserve kept interest rates on hold and called out growing dangers in the US economy amid Donald Trump's erratic rollout of an aggressive trade strategy. Jerome Powell, the US central bank's chair, cautioned that the president's tariffs are likely to lift prices, weaken growth and increase unemployment if maintained. Read the full story The Trump administration is planning to deport a group of migrants to Libya, according to reports, despite the state department's previous condemnation of the 'life-threatening' prison conditions in the country. Libya's provisional government has denied the reports. Read the full story A federal appeals court granted a judge's order to bring a Turkish Tufts University student from a Louisiana immigration detention center back to New England for hearings to determine whether her rights were violated. Read the full story Denmark has said that it will summon the US ambassador to Copenhagen to respond to reports that US intelligence agencies have been ordered to increase espionage in Greenland. Read the full story Donald Trump has tapped Dr Casey Means – a wellness influencer with close ties to Robert F Kennedy Jr, the US health secretary – as nominee for surgeon general. Means has no government experience and dropped out of her surgical residency program to found a health tech company, and makes money promoting dietary supplements, creams and teas. Read the full story What else happened today: Catching up? Here's what happened on 6 May 2025.
