Latest news with #SteveWitkoff
Boston Globe
4 hours ago
- Politics
- Boston Globe
Hamas says it is still reviewing a US proposal for a Gaza cease-fire
US negotiators have not publicized the terms of the proposal. But a Hamas official and an Egyptian official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive talks, said Thursday that it called for a 60-day pause in fighting, guarantees of serious negotiations leading to a long-term truce, and assurances that Israel will not resume hostilities after the release of hostages, In a terse statement issued a few hours before Trump spoke, Hamas said it is holding consultations with Palestinian factions over the proposal it had received from US envoy Steve Witkoff. Advertisement A United Nations spokesperson, Stephane Dujarric, urged the parties to 'find the political courage' to secure an agreement. While changes may have been made to the proposal, the version confirmed earlier called for Israeli forces to pull back to the positions they held before it ended the last cease-fire. Hamas would release 10 living hostages and a number of bodies during the 60-day pause in exchange for more than 1,100 Palestinians imprisoned by Israel, including 100 serving long sentences after being convicted of deadly attacks. Advertisement Each day, hundreds of trucks carrying food and humanitarian aid would be allowed to enter Gaza, where experts say a nearly three-month Israeli blockade — 'Negotiations are ongoing on the current proposal,' Qatar's ambassador to the United Nations, Alya Ahmed Saif Al-Thani said Friday, referring to talks between her country, the United States, and Egypt. 'We are very determined to find an ending to this horrific situation in Gaza.' On Thursday, a top Hamas official, Bassem Naim, said the US proposal 'does not respond to any of our people's demands, foremost among which is stopping the war and famine.' The uncertainty over the new proposal came as hospital officials said that 27 people had been killed Friday in separate airstrikes. A strike that hit a tent in the southern city of Khan Younis killed 13, including eight children, hospital officials said. The Israeli military did not immediately comment. Meanwhile, the bodies of 12 people, including three women, were brought to Shifa Hospital on Friday from the nearby Jabaliya refugee camp. The Palestinian Red Crescent Society said the bodies of two others were brought to a hospital in Gaza City. Hospital officials also said Friday that at least 72 had been killed in Gaza during the previous day. That figure does not include some hospitals in the north, which are largely cut off due to the fighting. Since the war began, more than 54,000 Gaza residents, mostly Advertisement The war began when Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, killing around 1,200 people, most of them civilians, and taking 250 hostages. Of those taken captive, 58 remain in Gaza, but Israel believes 35 are dead and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said there are 'doubts' about the fate of several others. Some Gaza residents said their hope for a cease-fire is tempered by repeated disappointment over negotiations that failed to deliver a lasting deal. 'This is the war of starvation, death, siege, and long lines for food and toilets,' Mohammed Abed told the Associated Press in the central Gaza city of Deir al-Balah. 'This war is the 2025 nightmare, 2024 nightmare, and 2023 nightmare.' Abed said he and his family struggle to find food, waiting three hours to get a small amount of rice and eating only one meal daily. 'It's heartbreaking that people are being starved because of politics. Food and water should not be used for political purposes,' he said. Another Gaza resident, Mohammed Mreil, said about the possibility of a truce that: 'We want to live and we want them (Israelis) to live. God did not create us to die.'
Egypt Today
7 hours ago
- Politics
- Egypt Today
French President praise mediators' efforts to reach ceasefire in Gaza
CAIRO – 30 May 2025: French President Emmanuel Macron praised Egypt and Qatar for their efforts to achieve a ceasefire, saying, 'I salute the Egyptian, Qatari, and American efforts to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza. We cannot leave Israel free to do whatever it wants in Gaza.' Hamas said on Friday that it is still consulting with Palestinian forces and factions regarding the US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff ceasefire proposal in Gaza that was received via mediators. In another statement, the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP) called on the Hamas leadership to exert more efforts, in cooperation with Arab mediators, to reach an agreement to halt the aggression in the Gaza Strip, even for 60 days. The statement explained that this period would be sufficient to allow for regional and international initiatives to develop the situation in the favor of the Palestinian people. The official spokesman for DFLP said that given the impasse in the ongoing negotiations with the US administration to halt the aggression on the Gaza Strip, due to Washington's clear bias towards the Israeli position of continuing the war, the Front is fully confident that the Hamas leadership is fully aware of the grave dangers facing our people if a ceasefire is not reached immediately. High hopes are pinned on the US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff ceasefire proposal in Gaza after Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu announced accepting it; while Hamas said in a statement that it has received it via mediators and will 'study it responsibly'. The new suggested proposal is to secure a 60-day ceasefire in Gaza and allow aid to enter the Strip following the two sides' approval. The White House also expressed its optimism with the new proposal from envoy Steve Witkoff according to Axios, saying that this proposal expected to help bridge the remaining gaps between Israel and Hamas and produce a ceasefire and hostage deal in Gaza soon. 'If each side moves just a bit, we could have a deal within days,' Axios quoted a source. In case Hamas announced its approval; the United States President Donald Trump will explain details of the new brokered deal. According to Israeli reports, Witkoff has affirmed repeatedly Trump's commitment to reaching a ceasefire in Gaza. The proposal states that US, Egypt, and Qatar are listed as guarantors for maintaining the ceasefire over the 60-day period and any potential extension.
France 24
7 hours ago
- Politics
- France 24
Israel says Hamas must accept US deal or be ‘annihilated', Trump says Gaza truce ‘close'
Israel 's defence minister on Friday warned Hamas to accept a ceasefire proposal submitted by US envoy Steve Witkoff"or be annihilated", after the group said the deal failed to satisfy its demands. In a statement, Defence Minister Israel Katz said the military was acting in Gaza "with full force", adding: "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." Hamas on Friday said it was still reviewing the US proposal for a temporary ceasefire in Gaza, where 27 people were killed in new Israeli air strikes, according to hospital officials. US President Donald Trump on Friday said he believes an agreement on a Gaza ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas was "very close". "They're very close to an agreement on Gaza," Trump told reporters during a joint news conference with Elon Musk at the White House. "We'll let you know about it during the day or maybe tomorrow. And we have a chance of that." Hamas reviewing ceasefire proposal But the ceasefire plan has so far got a cool reaction from Hamas. US negotiators have not publicised the terms of the proposal. But a Hamas official and an Egyptian official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive talks, said Thursday that it called for a 60-day pause in fighting, guarantees of serious negotiations leading to a long-term truce and assurances that Israel will not resume hostilities after the release of hostages, as it did in March. In a terse statement issued Friday, Hamas said it is holding consultations with Palestinian factions over the proposal it had received from Witkoff. While changes may have been made to the proposal, the version confirmed earlier called for Israeli forces to pull back to the positions they held before it ended the last ceasefire. Hamas would release 10 living hostages and a number of bodies during the 60-day pause in exchange for more than 1,100 Palestinians imprisoned by Israel, including 100 serving long sentences after being convicted of deadly attacks. Each day, hundreds of trucks carrying food and humanitarian aid would be allowed to enter Gaza, where experts say a nearly three-month Israeli blockade — slightly eased in recent days — has pushed the population to the brink of famine. 'War of starvation, death, siege' The uncertainty over the new proposal came as hospital officials said that 27 people had been killed Friday in separate air strikes. A strike that hit a tent in the southern city of Khan Younis killed 13, including eight children, hospital officials said. The Israeli military did not immediately comment. Meanwhile, the bodies of 12 people, including three women, were brought to Shifa Hospital on Friday from the nearby Jabaliya refugee camp. The Palestinian Red Crescent Society said the bodies of two others were brought to a hospital in Gaza City. Hospital officials also said Friday that at least 72 had been killed in Gaza during the previous day. That figure does not include some hospitals in the north, which are largely cut off due to the fighting. Since the war began, more than 54,000 Gaza residents, mostly women and children, have been killed according to the Gaza health ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its tally. The war began when Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, killing around 1,200 people, most of them civilians, and taking 250 hostages. Of those taken captive, 58 remain in Gaza, but Israel believes 35 are dead and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said there are 'doubts' about the fate of several others. Some Gaza residents said their hope for a ceasefire is tempered by repeated disappointment over negotiations that failed to deliver a lasting deal. "This is the war of starvation, death, siege and long lines for food and toilets,' Mohammed Abed told The Associated Press in the central Gaza city of Deir al-Balah. 'This war is the 2025 nightmare, 2024 nightmare and 2023 nightmare.' Abed said he and his family struggle to find food, waiting three hours to get a small amount of rice and eating only one meal daily. 'It's heartbreaking that people are being starved because of politics. Food and water should not be used for political purposes,' he said. Another Gaza resident, Mohammed Mreil, said about the possibility of a truce that: 'We want to live and we want them (Israelis) to live. God did not create us to die.'
Egypt Today
7 hours ago
- Politics
- Egypt Today
Hamas says consultations still ongoing regarding Witkoff proposal
CAIRO – 30 May 2025: Hamas said on Friday that it is still consulting with Palestinian forces and factions regarding the US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff ceasefire proposal in Gaza that was received via mediators. In another statement, the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP) called on the Hamas leadership to exert more efforts, in cooperation with Arab mediators, to reach an agreement to halt the aggression in the Gaza Strip, even for 60 days. The statement explained that this period would be sufficient to allow for regional and international initiatives to develop the situation in the favor of the Palestinian people. The official spokesman for DFLP said that given the impasse in the ongoing negotiations with the US administration to halt the aggression on the Gaza Strip, due to Washington's clear bias towards the Israeli position of continuing the war, the Front is fully confident that the Hamas leadership is fully aware of the grave dangers facing our people if a ceasefire is not reached immediately. High hopes are pinned on the US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff ceasefire proposal in Gaza after Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu announced accepting it; while Hamas said in a statement that it has received it via mediators and will 'study it responsibly'. The new suggested proposal is to secure a 60-day ceasefire in Gaza and allow aid to enter the Strip following the two sides' approval. The White House also expressed its optimism with the new proposal from envoy Steve Witkoff according to Axios, saying that this proposal expected to help bridge the remaining gaps between Israel and Hamas and produce a ceasefire and hostage deal in Gaza soon. 'If each side moves just a bit, we could have a deal within days,' Axios quoted a source. In case Hamas announced its approval; the United States President Donald Trump will explain details of the new brokered deal. According to Israeli reports, Witkoff has affirmed repeatedly Trump's commitment to reaching a ceasefire in Gaza. The proposal states that US, Egypt, and Qatar are listed as guarantors for maintaining the ceasefire over the 60-day period and any potential extension. Trump will be guaranteeing Israel's compliance, while Hamas is to release 10 living hostages and the remains of 18 individuals—half on the first day and half on the seventh day of the ceasefire, according to the proposal. Also, humanitarian aid is to be delivered to Gaza once both sides agree on the ceasefire and its distribution will be coordinated by the UN and the Red Crescent. On the tenth day of the ceasefire, Hamas is expected to provide full information regarding all remaining hostages. The Israeli occupation authorities have closed the Gaza crossings since March 2, following the end of the first phase of the ceasefire agreement. An agreement to consolidate the ceasefire was not reached, and Israel violated it with airstrikes on March 18, resuming its ground incursion and occupying various areas of the Gaza Strip. Israel also blocked relief aid and reconstruction equipment from entering Gaza. Limited aid trucks resumed entry into Gaza on Monday, May 19.
Shafaq News
7 hours ago
- Politics
- Shafaq News
Trump: Gaza ceasefire to be finalized within 48 hours
Shafaq News/ A ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas is nearing completion and could be finalized within the next 48 hours, US President Donald Trump announced from the Oval Office on Friday. The proposed deal, brokered by US Envoy Steve Witkoff, outlines a 60-day ceasefire, the release of 28 Israeli hostages (both living and deceased), and the exchange of 1,236 Palestinian prisoners, in addition to humanitarian aid delivery, coordinated by the UN and other organizations. While Israel has accepted the proposal, Hamas is currently reviewing the terms, expressing concerns that the deal does not fully address their demands, such as a complete end to hostilities and the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza. The Israeli war has resulted in over 54,000 Palestinian deaths and significant destruction in Gaza, amid increasing international pressure for a resolution.
