Hamas delegation due in Cairo on Monday for Gaza ceasefire talks

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Summary:

• A senior Hamas official has said the Palestinian militant group will deliver its response to Israel's latest counterproposal for a Gaza ceasefire at talks in Egypt on Monday.
• US President Joe Biden spoke Sunday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and reiterated his "clear position" on Israeli plans to invade Gaza's southernmost city of Rafah, the White House said.
• Some senior US officials have advised Secretary of State Antony Blinken that they do not find “credible or reliable” Israel’s assurances that it is using US-supplied weapons in accordance with international humanitarian law, according to a leaked internal State Department memo.
• French Foreign Minister Stéphane Séjourné arrived in Lebanon on Sunday as part of diplomatic attempts to broker a de-escalation in the conflict between Israel and the Iran-allied group Hezbollah.
• At least 34,454 Palestinians have been killed and an estimated 77,575 have been injured in Israel’s military offensive in Gaza, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory. Some 1,170 people were killed in the Hamas-led October 7 attacks that sparked the war and 250 people were taken hostage, according to Israeli figures, with 132 still missing.

   

10:26pm: Blinken to visit Israel, Jordan on new Mideast trip

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will visit Israel and Jordan on a trip through Wednesday, the State Department announced, after the US and Israeli leaders discussed hostage-release talks by telephone.

Blinken will travel to both countries, a State Department official confirmed as the top US diplomat refuelled Sunday in Ireland on his way to a previously announced trip to Saudi Arabia.

10:15pm: Biden, Netanyahu discuss hostage-release talks in new call

US President Joe Biden has spoken with Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and "reviewed ongoing talks" to free hostages held by Hamas, the White House has said.

The two allies "reviewed ongoing talks to secure the release of hostages together with an immediate ceasefire in Gaza," the White House said in a statement.

Biden and Netanyahu "also discussed increases in the delivery of humanitarian assistance into Gaza including through preparations to open new northern crossings starting this week," the statement said.

"The President stressed the need for this progress to be sustained and enhanced in full coordination with humanitarian organizations," it said.

9:30pm: Palestinian prisoner in Israel wins top fiction prize

Palestinian writer Basim Khandaqji, jailed 20 years ago in Israel, won a prestigious prize for Arabic fiction on Sunday for his novel "A Mask, the Colour of the Sky".

The award of the 2024 International Prize for Arabic Fiction was announced at a ceremony in Abu Dhabi. The prize was accepted on Khandaqji's behalf by Rana Idriss, owner of Dar al-Adab, the book's Lebanon-based publisher.

Khandaqji was born in the Israeli-occupied West Bank city of Nablus in 1983, and wrote short stories until his arrest in 2004 at the age of 21.

He was convicted and jailed on charges relating to a deadly bombing in Tel Aviv, and completed his university education from inside jail via the internet.

The mask in the novel's title refers to the blue identity card that Nur, an archaeologist living in a refugee camp in Ramallah, finds in the pocket of an old coat belonging to an Israeli.

Nabil Suleiman, who chaired the jury, said the novel "dissects a complex, bitter reality of family fragmentation, displacement, genocide, and racism".

Since being jailed Khandaqji has written poetry collections including "Rituals of the First Time" and "The Breath of a Nocturnal Poem".

8:25pm: Israeli ministers air differences over Gaza ceasefire talks

Two senior Israeli ministers have publicly opposed a Gaza truce deal, saying Benjamin Netanyahu's government has no right to exist if it failed to invade Rafah.

Far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and war cabinet minister Benny Gantz called for Hamas to be destroyed, as the government had vowed to do after the October 7 attack.

"If you decide to raise a white flag and cancel the plan to occupy Rafah aimed at destroying Hamas in order to restore security to Israel, then the government headed by you will have no right to exist," Smotrich wrote on X, addressing the premier.

"The Egyptian deal is a humiliating surrender... it sentences the hostages to death, and above all, constitutes an immediate existential danger to the state of Israel," the finance minister added.

Gantz, a former army chief and defence minister, also pushed for Rafah to be invaded.

"Entering Rafah is important in the long struggle against Hamas," he said in a statement issued by his party.

He added: "If a responsible outline for the return of hostages backed by the entire defence establishment is achieved, which doesn't entail ending the war, and the ministers who led the government on October 7 prevent it – the government will not have the right to continue to exist."

8:10pm: Israeli military says will scale up amount of aid entering Gaza

The amount of humanitarian aid going into the Gaza Strip will be ramped up in coming days, Israel's military has said, citing new corridors that use an Israeli seaport and border crossings into the Palestinian enclave.

A spiralling humanitarian crisis in Gaza has prompted calls from Israel's Western and Arab partners to do more to facilitate the entry of aid to the enclave, where most are homeless, many face famine, and where civilian infrastructure is devastated and disease widespread.

"Over the last few weeks, the amount of humanitarian aid going into Gaza has significantly increased. In the coming days, the amount of aid going into Gaza will continue to scale up even more," spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said in a statement.

"Food, water, medical supplies, shelter equipment and other aid – more of it is going into Gaza than ever before," Hagari said.

The United States said earlier this month it welcomed Israel's efforts to allow in more humanitarian aid but that success would be measured in results in improving the situation on the ground.

7:50pm: French FM seeks Israel-Hezbollah de-escalation on Lebanon visit

France's top diplomat has urged de-escalation between Israel and the Hezbollah movement during his second visit to Lebanon since cross-border tensions flared alongside the Gaza war.

Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah have exchanged near-daily fire since Hamas's October 7 attack on southern Israel, and fighting has intensified in recent weeks.

Hezbollah has repeatedly declared that only a ceasefire in Gaza will put an end to its attacks on Israel.

"We refuse a worst-case scenario... No one has any interest in Israel and Hezbollah continuing this escalation. This is my message here," French Foreign Minister Stéphane Séjourné told reporters in Beirut, adding that he would "bring this same message to Israel on Tuesday". 

Ahead of the press conference Séjourné met Lebanese officials, including Prime Minister Najib Mikati, army chief Joseph Aoun and influential parliamentary Speaker Nabih Berri, a Hezbollah ally.     

A return to stability "requires the redeployment of armed forces in southern Lebanon," he added, referring to a region where Hezbollah holds sway.

Earlier in the day Séjourné visited the headquarters of the United Nations' peacekeeping mission in southern Lebanon (UNIFIL), which includes around 700 French troops.

6:25pm: World Central Kitchen to resume Gaza aid after staff deaths in Israeli strike

World Central Kitchen (WCK) says it will resume operations in the Gaza Strip on Monday, a month after seven of its workers were killed in an Israeli air strike.

Prior to halting operations, the US-based charity had distributed more than 43 million meals in Gaza since October, representing by its own accounts 62% of all international NGO aid.

The charity said it had 276 trucks with the equivalent of almost 8 million meals ready to enter through the Rafah Crossing and will also send trucks into Gaza from Jordan.

"The humanitarian situation in Gaza remains dire," said the charity's chief executive officer Erin Gore. "We are restarting our operation with the same energy, dignity, and focus on feeding as many people as possible."

6:10pm: The key sticking points in Gaza ceasefire talks

Diplomatic efforts are intensifying to reach a long-sought ceasefire and hostage-release deal in Gaza, with Hamas saying it will travel to mediator Egypt to deliver its response after Israel's latest proposal.

The Israeli government has come under intense pressure from its global allies to reach a ceasefire, as well as from protesters within Israel demanding the release of hostages seized by Hamas militants during their October 7 attack that triggered the war.

FRANCE 24's Shirli Sitbon looks at the key sticking points.

5:10pm: US says Gaza aid pier ready in 'two to three weeks'

A US-made pier meant to boost aid to Gaza will become operational in a few weeks, the White House has said, though stressing that trucks travelling along land routes remain the best way to feed people in the territory.

The Pentagon said last week that the US military had begun building a pier meant to speed up aid deliveries.

"It will take probably two to three weeks before we can really see an operation," White House national security spokesman John Kirby told ABC News on Sunday.

Kirby said the floating platform to bring more food and other essentials into Gaza will help, but has its limits.

"Nothing can replace, quite frankly, nothing can replace the ground routes and the trucks that are getting in," Kirby said.

4:05pm: US senator questions whether State Dept properly assessing Israel's conduct

Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen has questioned whether the Biden administration is properly assessing Israel's degree of compliance with international law, following a Reuters report that some senior US officials did not find Israel's assurances credible.

"This reporting casts serious doubt on the integrity of the process in the Biden administration for reviewing whether the Netanyahu government is complying with international law in Gaza," Van Hollen said in a statement.

The Reuters report found that some senior State Department officials have advised Secretary of State Antony Blinken that they do not find "credible or reliable" Israel's assurances that it is using US-supplied weapons in accordance with international humanitarian law.

Blinken must tell Congress by May 8 whether he finds Israel's assurances credible. According to an internal State Department memo, several bureaus within the agency did not find Israel's statements credible, citing military actions that raised questions about potential violations of international humanitarian law.

Van Hollen said the Reuters report had found that the recommendations of those bureaus "were swept aside for political convenience".

2:55pm: How Gaza war protests spread across US colleges

Student protests over the Israel-Hamas war have popped up on an increasing number of college campuses following last week's arrest of more than 100 demonstrators at Columbia University in New York. 

The students are calling for universities to separate themselves from any companies that are advancing Israel’s military efforts in Gaza – and in some cases from Israel itself.

Protests on many campuses have been orchestrated by coalitions of student groups. The groups largely act independently, though students say they’re inspired by peers at other universities.

FRANCE 24's Jennie Shin takes a closer look:

2:35pm: Hamas official says delegation to respond to Gaza truce plan in Egypt Monday

Hamas will deliver its response to Israel's latest counterproposal for a Gaza ceasefire on Monday in Egypt, a senior official of the Palestinian group has told AFP.

"A Hamas delegation headed by Khalil al-Hayya will arrive in Egypt tomorrow... and deliver the movement's response" to the Israeli proposal during a meeting with Egyptian intelligence officials, said the official who declined to be named.

US news website Axios, citing two Israeli officials, earlier reported that Israel's latest proposal includes a willingness to discuss the "restoration of sustainable calm" in Gaza after hostages are released.

It is the first time in the nearly seven-month war that Israeli leaders have suggested they are open to discussing an end to the war, Axios said.

"Hamas is open to discussing the new proposal positively," another Hamas source close to the negotiations told AFP.

1:01pm: Top Qatari official urges Israel and Hamas to do more to reach ceasefire deal

A senior Qatari official has urged both Israel and Hamas to show “more commitment and more seriousness” in ceasefire negotiations in interviews with Israeli media.

Qatar, which hosts Hamas headquarters in Doha, has been a key intermediary throughout the Israel-Hamas war. Along with the US and Egypt, Qatar was instrumental in helping negotiate a brief halt to the fighting in November that led to the release of dozens of hostages.

The sides have held numerous rounds of negotiations since, none of which produced an additional truce. In a sign of its frustration, Qatar earlier this month said it was reassessing its role as mediator.

In the interviews, Qatar’s foreign ministry spokesperson Majed al-Ansari expressed disappointment in both Hamas and Israel, saying each side has made its decisions based on political interests and not with the good of civilians in mind.

He did not reveal details of the current state of the talks, other than to say they have “effectively stopped”, with “both sides entrenched in their positions”.

“If there is a renewed sense of commitment on both sides, I’m sure we can reach a deal,” he said.

11:56am: Hamas delegation to visit Cairo on Monday for Gaza ceasefire talks, official says

A Hamas delegation will visit Cairo on Monday for Gaza ceasefire talks, a Hamas official who asked not to be named told Reuters, adding that the delegation will discuss a proposed ceasefire offered by mediators as well as Israel’s response.

11:33am: Death toll in Gaza rises to 34,454

At least 34,454 Palestinians have been killed and 77,575 others injured in Israel’s military offensive on Gaza since October 7, the Gaza health ministry in the Hamas-run territory said in a statement on Sunday.

Some 66 of them were killed and 138 others were wounded over the past 24 hours, the ministry said.

11:15am: Abbas worried Israel will try to push Palestinians out of West Bank

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Sunday said he is worried that Israel will try to “push Palestinians out of the West Bank after it’s done with Gaza”. Abbas spoke at the World Economic Forum in Riyadh, whose guest list also includes representatives of Hamas and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

The Palestinian leader also warned that an Israeli invasion of Rafah is expected within the next few days, and that it be "the biggest disaster in the history of the Palestinian people".

Only the United States is able to put a stop to it by putting pressure on Israel, he said. “We appeal to the United States of America to ask Israel to stop the Rafah operation because America is the only country capable of preventing Israel from committing this crime.”

10:04am: Anti-war protests on US campuses spread

From New York to California, students protesting the Israel-Hamas war slept in tents at college campuses, as some universities moved to shut down encampments and arrested dozens of demonstrators after reports of anti-Semitic activity.

Protesters are demanding schools cut financial ties to Israel and divest from companies they say enable the conflict. Some Jewish students say the protests have veered into anti-Semitism and made them afraid to set foot on campus.

At Columbia University in New York City, where early protests sparked pro-Palestinian demonstrations across the country, students and administrators have engaged in negotiations, the university said in a statement Saturday night.

Washington University in St. Louis locked some campus buildings and arrested protesters Saturday. The St. Louis Police Department said in a social media post that it assisted campus police, although city officers did not make any arrests. The University of Southern California said on Saturday it had temporarily closed its University Park Campus to nonresidents, without providing details of the closure or possible enforcement measures.

In Boston, police in riot gear cleared an encampment on the campus of Northeastern University on Saturday.

9:46am: France to make proposals to prevent war between Hezbollah and Israel

France’s foreign minister said that he would make proposals to Lebanese officials on Sunday aimed at easing tensions between Hezbollah and Israel and preventing a war from breaking out.

“If I look at the situation today if there was not a war in Gaza, we could be talking about a war in southern Lebanon given the number of strikes and the impact on the area,” Stéphane Séjourné said after visiting the United Nations peace keeping force in Naqoura, southern Lebanon.

“I will pass messages and make proposals to the authorities here to stabilise this zone and avoid a war.”

9:45am: Host Saudi warns of economic fallout from Gaza war at summit

Saudi Arabia on Sunday called for regional “stability”, warning of the effects of the ongoing Israel-Hamas war on global economic sentiment at the start of a summit attended by a host of Gaza mediators.

The Gaza war along with conflicts in Ukraine and elsewhere has put “a lot of pressure” on the economic “mood”, Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed al-Jadaan said at one of the first panel discussions of the two-day World Economic Forum (WEF) special meeting.

“I think cool-headed countries and leaders and people need to prevail, and you need to make sure that you actually de-escalate,” Jadaan said. “The region needs stability.”

8:24am: Video of hostages puts pressure on Israeli government

Hamas’s release of a video on Saturday of two men held hostage in Gaza has put pressure on the Israeli government. In the video, the hostages urge Israeli authorities to strike a deal for the release of all the remaining captives.

Campaign group the Hostages and Missing Families Forum identified the two as Keith Siegel and Omri Miran who were abducted by militants during the Hamas attack on southern Israel on October 7. Siegel also has US citizenship.

“The proof of life from Keith Siegel and Omri Miran is the clearest evidence that the Israeli government must do everything to approve a deal for the return of all the hostages before Independence Day (on May 14),” the forum said in a statement.

Also on Saturday, crowds of protesters gathered in Tel Aviv demanding that the authorities strike a deal for the release of the hostages. “A deal now,” demonstrators chanted as they called for Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and his government to resign.

02:20

7:02am: Gaza to dominate Riyadh summit

The war in Gaza and broader Middle East tensions are expected to get top billing as the Saudi-hosted special meeting of the World Economic Forum gets underway in Riyadh on Sunday.

“We meet at a moment when one misjudgement or one miscalculation or one miscommunication will further exacerbate our challenges,” Saudi planning minister Faisal al-Ibrahim said ahead of the conference.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Palestinian leaders and high-ranking officials from other countries trying to broker a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas are on the guest list for the summit in Riyadh, but there will be no Israeli participation, and officials said the formal mediation process between Israel and Hamas will unfold elsewhere.

2:53am: Gaza protests mar White House correspondents’ dinner

Hundreds of people outraged over the mounting humanitarian disaster for Palestinian civilians in Gaza gathered outside the annual White House correspondents’ dinner in Washington DC on Saturday, condemning President Joe Biden for his support of Israel’s military campaign.

“Shame on you!” protesters draped in the traditional Palestinian keffiyeh cloth shouted, running after men in tuxedos and suits and women in long dresses holding clutch purses as guests hurried inside for the dinner.

“Western media we see you, and all the horrors that you hide,” the crowds also chanted, accusing Western news outlets of undercoverage and what they said was a misrepresentation of the conflict.

Yesterday's key developments:

• Hamas on Saturday released video footage of two men held hostage in Gaza, showing their first proof of life in months. In the undated video, Omri Miran said he had been held for 202 days and Keith Siegel mentioned the Easter Passover holiday, indicating the video was filmed recently.
• Hamas said it had received on Saturday Israel's official response to its position over ceasefire talks and will study the proposal before submitting its response, the group's deputy chief in Gaza, Khalil Al-Hayya, said in a statement.
• Israel’s foreign minister said on Saturday that a planned incursion into the southern Gaza city of Rafah could be suspended should there be a deal to secure the release of Israeli hostages held by Hamas.
• A "Freedom Flotilla" aimed at delivering aid to Gaza was blocked in Turkey Saturday after being denied use of two of its ships, which organisers blamed on Israeli pressure.

(FRANCE 24 with AFP, Reuters, AP)