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The United Nations on Tuesday warned that 14,000 babies could die in Gaza in the next 48 hours, unless aid supplies reach critical areas in the enclave soon.UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher has warned of a need to "flood" Gaza with humanitarian aid, amid claims that thousands of the region's youngest children face imminent death due to a lack of basic food and medical supplies.
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Both EU and Arab League members want to exclude it from administering Gaza if a truce with Israel is reached. Hamas however, remains an ingrained factor in the Palestinian question. Palestinians would turn to Hamas because of feeble Fatah. Hamas may not score over Israel, but it remains a dominant player within Palestine
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Ismail Barhoum, a member of Hamas' political bureau, was killed in an Israeli airstrike at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis.
Hamas senior official was undergoing treatment at the hospital.
Barhoum became Gaza's prime minister after Issam Da’alis, who was eliminated days ago, said Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz.
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Hundreds of Israeli protesters gathered outside Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s residence, demanding the return of all remaining hostages held in Gaza. Israeli police intervened as tensions escalated with protesters lighting flares and setting up bonfires. Netanyahu's decision to block humanitarian aid to Gaza, following Hamas' rejection of a ceasefire extension, has sparked concerns among Israelis and hostage families about the ceasefire's sustainability and the safety of those still held captive. Hamas insists on the original ceasefire terms, rejecting temporary extensions until all Israeli hostages are released.
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The ‘Gaza Ceasefire Deal’ is a mirror image of the May 2024 ‘Biden Plan’, which Israel rejected. What’s changed since then? For one, Israel has achieved all its critical military objectives. The imminent return of Donald Trump to the Oval Office has created its own dynamics which catalyzed Netanyahu to risk the ire of his right-wing coalition partners by accepting a deal. At the heart of it all is Iran, which will be the target of both the Trump Administration and Israel
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A “maximum pressure” campaign, combined with Israel’s military successes, could bring Gulf states into a stronger anti-Tehran alliance
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Israel is now at war with Hamas in Gaza and its ally Hezbollah in Lebanon, which began firing rockets at Israel on October 8, 2023.
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The Iran-backed Lebanese group also reported targeting Israeli troops in the south Lebanon area of Yarun with a "rocket salvo," as well as striking soldiers at two other points across the border.
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Hostage executions have highlighted doubts over the prime minister’s motives with regards to a cease-fire
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During his speech Biden said that Hamas was "backing away" from a deal with Israel to agree on a ceasefire in the war in Gaza.
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Hezbollah and Iran are OK with the state of things for now, but they could make their move if a peace is brokered between Israel and Hamas
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The vote in the 15-member Security Council was 11 members in favor, three against and one abstention.
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The US top diplomat touched down in Jeddah where he was to meet Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, said an AFP journalist on board, the first stop on Blinken's sixth Middle East tour since the Israel-Hamas war started on October 7.
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Complexity has a cost — in physical energy, administrative friction and other forms. At first, increases in complexity seem affordable and even useful. Eventually, however, a law of diminishing marginal returns on complexity sets in, and the costs, while difficult to see, become harder to bear. If such a complex society is then buffeted by external or internal shocks, it can collapse. The shocks have typically included droughts, famines, plagues, migrations, rebellions, civil wars and invasions
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The ministry also said 71,700 people have been wounded in Gaza since the war between Israel and Hamas broke out on October 7.
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The toll stood at around 20,000 people on Thursday, amid renewed international calls for a fresh ceasefire in Gaza.
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Such a short pause can’t achieve the political aims of either side, and the main challenge will be for the combatants to stay protected while observing it — one reason even temporary ceasefires tend to be volatile. The IDF’s task is to eliminate Hamas’ military capabilities, and that job is far from complete, making it unlikely that Israel would allow the pause to extend to a more permanent truce
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Enter China, which has been quick to spot the opportunity to act global peacemaker, despite its many limitations. Beijing has been trying to position itself as a powerful player in the Middle East, after it helped broker a détente between Iran and Saudi Arabia
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Since 1967, the global community has called for a two-state solution. But instead since the Oslo Accords in 1993, it’s been clever by half measures – more land grabs, more illegal settlements, an increased cycle of violence, all in the West Bank, an area sans Hamas, debunking the myth that it’s all about Hamas
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Everyone from Biden to the European Union and Israel’s own Shin Bet security service have warned Netanyahu that, unless the settlers are reined in, their rampages could spark widespread violence in the West Bank, in Israel itself, and spill into the wider region
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In theory, Iran can rally Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, and Iran-backed groups in Iraq and Syria to launch a multi-front war on Israel. But Iran does not want such a war to happen because the consequences would be catastrophic for its regional assets and for the country itself
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Israel’s asymmetrical strength and unchecked retribution means too many Palestinians have been slain in Gaza. Israel is so far behind the “defending itself” argument, that one would have to wonder, which other state has gone from victim (October 7 attacks) to villain so quickly
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The Arab states should make it plain that they will only help in cleaning up the mess left by the war — rebuilding Gaza’s political institutions as well as its physical infrastructure — if Israel commits to the two-state solution and a timeline. In return, they should guarantee that Israel will not face a threat from Hamas
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The transition force for Gaza should have a clear mandate to use weapons, include trained police, and its composition should be chosen carefully to ensure locals trust the peacekeepers they meet, while Israel can trust its overall commanders. This is hard but it can be done by the UN, because it has been done before
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Both Hamas and Israel are playing a high stakes power game and are sacrificing civilians. Hamas wants to be the negotiator with Israel like the PLO was in the 1990s and Israel wants to prevent that possibility through its ongoing ground invasion. Hamas is reminiscent of the Taliban, which had political roots and legitimacy of a limited kind, and the Americans may have to negotiate with Hamas
