Israeli team heads to Qatar for Gaza truce talks

Israeli team heads to Qatar for Gaza truce talks
Displaced Palestinian children push into a queue to get a portion of cooked food from a charity kitchen in Beit Lahia in northern Gaza Strip, ahead of iftar during Ramadan on March 9, 2025. (AFP)
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Updated 10 March 2025

Israeli team heads to Qatar for Gaza truce talks

Israeli team heads to Qatar for Gaza truce talks
  • Israel disconnects only power line to Gaza water desalination plant 
  • Hamas denounces the move as “cheap and unacceptable blackmail”

JERUSALEM: Israel’s negotiating team left for Qatar Monday for talks aimed at extending the fragile Gaza ceasefire, after Israel cut the Palestinian territory’s electricity supply to ramp up pressure on Hamas.
Ahead of the negotiations, Israel disconnected the only power line to a water desalination plant in Gaza, a move Hamas denounced as “cheap and unacceptable blackmail.”
The first phase of the truce deal expired on March 1 with no agreement on subsequent stages that should secure a lasting end to the war that erupted with Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel.
There are differences over how to proceed — Hamas wants immediate negotiations on the next phase, but Israel prefers extending phase one.
Hamas accused Israel of reneging on the ceasefire deal, saying in a statement Monday Israel “refuses to commence the second phase, exposing its intentions of evasion and stalling.”
An Israeli official familiar with the negotiations told AFP the country’s team had left for Doha. Media reports said the delegation was led by a top official from the domestic security agency Shin Bet.
Israel has halted aid deliveries to Gaza amid the deadlock, and said Sunday it was cutting the electricity supply.
“We will use all the tools at our disposal to bring back the hostages and ensure that Hamas is no longer in Gaza the day after” the war, Energy Minister Eli Cohen said.
The move echoed the early days of the war when Israel announced a “complete siege” on the Palestinian territory, severing the electricity supply which was only restored in mid-2024.
Hamas spokesman Abdul Latif Al-Qanoua said Israel’s move will impact its hostages still held in Gaza.
“The decision to cut electricity is a failed option and poses a threat to its (Israeli) prisoners, who will only be freed through negotiations,” Qanoua said in a statement on Monday.
Germany and Britain both criticized Israel over its latest decisions.
Germany foreign ministry spokeswoman Kathrin Deschauer said Gaza was “again threatened with a food shortage” and that cutting off electricity was “unacceptable and not compatible with (Israel’s) obligations under international law.”
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s official spokesman told reporters: “We’re deeply concerned by these reports and urge Israel to lift these restrictions.”
The Ramallah-based Palestinian Authority also slammed Israel, calling the move an “escalation in the genocide” in Gaza.
The sole power line between Israel and Gaza supplies its main desalination plant, and Gazans now mainly rely on solar panels and fuel-powered generators to produce electricity.
Hundreds of thousands now live in tents across Gaza, where temperatures currently reach a night-time low of about 12 degrees Celsius (54 Fahrenheit).
Top Hamas official Izzat Al-Rishq called Israel’s decision “to cut off electricity to Gaza, after depriving it of food, medicine, and water” a “desperate attempt to pressure our people and their resistance.”
Gaza residents told AFP the electricity cut will only worsen their situation.
“The decision to cut off electricity is proof of a war of extermination,” Dina Al-Sayigh said from Gaza City.
“The occupation never stops killing Palestinian civilians, whether by bombing, missiles or by starvation.”
Hamas has repeatedly demanded that the second phase of the truce — brokered by Qatar, Egypt and the United States — include a comprehensive hostage-prisoner exchange, a complete Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, a permanent ceasefire and the reopening of border crossings to end the blockade.
Spokesman Hazem Qassem told AFP Hamas wanted the mediators to ensure Israel “complies with the agreement... and proceeds with the second phase according to the agreed-upon terms.”
Former US president Joe Biden had outlined a second phase involving hostage releases and the withdrawal of all Israeli forces from Gaza.
US envoy Adam Boehler, who has held unprecedented direct talks with Hamas, told CNN Sunday a deal could be reached “within weeks” to secure the release of all remaining hostages, not just the five dual US-Israelis, most of whom have been confirmed dead.
Of the 251 hostages taken during the October 7 attack, 58 are still held in Gaza, including 34 the Israeli military has confirmed dead.
Boehler told CNN a “long-term truce” was “real close,” but later Sunday he told Israel’s Channel 12 that Washington would back any Israeli decision, including a return to war.
In late February, US President Donald Trump issued what he called a “last warning” to Hamas, threatening further destruction if it does not release all remaining hostages.
The initial 42-day phase of the truce, which began on January 19, reduced hostilities after more than 15 months of relentless fighting that displaced nearly all of Gaza’s 2.4 million people.
During phase one, 25 living Israeli hostages and eight bodies were exchanged for about 1,800 Palestinians in Israeli custody.
The truce also allowed in much-needed food, shelter and medical assistance.
Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack resulted in the deaths of 1,218 people on the Israeli side, most of them civilians, while Israel’s retaliatory campaign has killed at least 48,467 people in Gaza, also mostly civilians, according to data from both sides.


Trump says he thinks Gaza hostages will be ‘coming back’ Monday

Updated 16 sec ago

Trump says he thinks Gaza hostages will be ‘coming back’ Monday

Trump says he thinks Gaza hostages will be ‘coming back’ Monday
WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump said he believes all the hostages held in Gaza, including the bodies of those deceased, will be “coming back” Monday after Israel and Hamas agreed to a ceasefire.
“So much is happening to get the hostages freed, and we think they’ll all be coming back on Monday, so it looks like that’s the thing, and that’ll include the bodies of the dead,” Trump said in a phone interview on Fox News.
The Republican president spoke late Wednesday, hours after he announced the 20-point peace plan aimed at ending two years of a brutal war that left Gaza in ruins and unleashed a humanitarian disaster.
Under the plan, Palestinian militant group Hamas would release all hostages while Israel would pull its troops back to an agreed-upon line, Trump said after talks in Egypt resulted in an agreement.
He was quick to suggest the deal could ripple through the region, to even include contributions from Israel’s and Washington’s longtime foe Iran.
“This is more than Gaza, this is peace in the Middle East,” he told Fox, adding he believes “Iran is going to be actually a part of the whole peace situation.”
“The world has come together around this deal,” he continued, saying it was “great for Israel, so great for Muslims, for the Arab countries, and so great for this country.”
The American leader has long suggested the Palestinian enclave along the Mediterranean Sea could eventually be rebuilt into a flourishing hub if tensions in the region ease, and he hinted at those hopes again Wednesday, adding that the United States would be involved.
Gaza is “going to be a place that reconstructs, and other countries in the area will help it reconstruct, because they have tremendous amounts of wealth, and they want to see that happen,” he said.
“And we’ll be involved in helping them make it successful and helping it stay peaceful.”

Israel and Hamas agree to first phase of Trump’s plan to end Gaza war

Israel and Hamas agree to first phase of Trump’s plan to end Gaza war
Updated 09 October 2025

Israel and Hamas agree to first phase of Trump’s plan to end Gaza war

Israel and Hamas agree to first phase of Trump’s plan to end Gaza war
  • Hostages set to be released
  • Aid will be allowed into Gaza

WASHINGTON/CAIRO: Israel and Hamas agreed on Wednesday to the first phase of US President Donald Trump’s plan for Gaza, a ceasefire and hostage deal that could open the way to ending a bloody two-year-old war that has upended the Middle East.
Just a day after the second anniversary of the cross-border attack by Hamas militants that triggered Israel’s devastating assault on Gaza, indirect talks in Egypt yielded an agreement on the initial stage of Trump’s 20-point framework to bring peace to the Palestinian enclave.
The accord, if fully implemented, would bring the two sides closer than any previous effort to halt a war that had evolved into a regional conflict, drawing in countries such as Iran, Yemen and Lebanon, deepened Israel’s international isolation and reshaped the Middle East.
But the deal announced by Trump late on Wednesday was short on detail and left many unresolved questions that could still lead to its collapse, as has happened with previous peace efforts.
Successful completion of the deal would mark a significant foreign policy achievement for the Republican president, who had campaigned on bringing peace to major world conflicts but has struggled to swiftly deliver, both in Gaza and on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“I am very proud to announce that Israel and Hamas have both signed off on the first Phase of our Peace Plan,” Trump said on Truth Social.
“This means that ALL of the Hostages will be released very soon, and Israel will withdraw their Troops to an agreed upon line as the first steps toward a Strong, Durable, and Everlasting Peace,” Trump added.
Trump said earlier that a deal was almost done and that he may travel to Egypt this weekend, possibly leaving as soon as Saturday. Axios reported that he may go to Israel as well.
There was no immediate comment from the White House.
The agreement could pave the way for desperately needed humanitarian aid to be immediately sent to Gaza Strip, where a global hunger monitor said in August over half a million people were experiencing famine.
Gaza authorities say more than 67,000 people have been killed and much of the enclave has been flattened since Israel began its military response to the Hamas cross-border attack on Oct. 7, 2023. Around 1,200 people were killed and 251 were taken hostage back to Gaza, according to Israeli officials, with 20 of the 48 hostages still held believed to be alive.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a written statement, referring to the hostages held by Hamas: “With God’s help we will bring them all home.” He said he would convene his government on Thursday to approve the agreement.
Hamas confirmed it had reached an agreement to end the war, saying the deal includes an Israeli withdrawal from the enclave and a hostage-prisoner exchange. But the group called on Trump and guarantor states to ensure Israel fully implements the ceasefire, it added in a statement.

Hostage release expected in days
“All Parties will be treated fairly!” Trump said on Truth Social. “This is a GREAT Day for the Arab and Muslim World, Israel, all surrounding Nations, and the United States of America, and we thank the mediators from Qatar, Egypt, and Turkiye, who worked with us to make this Historic and Unprecedented Event happen.”
Senior envoys from the US, Qatar and Turkiye had joined the talks, apparently adding momentum to discussions launched on Monday in the Egyptian resort town of Sharm el-Sheikh.
Trump sent his son-in-law Jared Kushner and special envoy Steve Witkoff, and Israel was represented by Israeli Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, a close confidant of Netanyahu.
Despite the hopes raised for ending the war, crucial details are yet to be spelled out, including the timing, a post-war administration for the Gaza Strip and the fate of the Palestinian militant group Hamas.
A Hamas source said the living hostages would be handed over within 72 hours of the Israeli government approving the deal. Hamas officials have insisted it will take longer to recover the bodies of dead hostages, believed to number about 28, from Gaza’s rubble.
An Israeli government spokesperson said the hostage release was expected to begin on Saturday.
Trump told Fox News’ ‘Hannity’ program on Wednesday that hostages held in Gaza will probably be released on Monday.
Netanyahu and Trump spoke by phone and congratulated each other on an “historic achievement,” and the Israeli prime minister invited the USpresident to address Israel’s parliament, according to Netanyahu’s office.
Trump had pushed Netanyahu, to whom he had largely given free rein in Gaza until recently, to make concessions. The conservative Israeli leader has also been under growing pressure from hostage families and, according to opinion polls, a war-weary public.
But Netanyahu has also faced threats from far-right members of his governing coalition to quit the government if he gives up too much to the Palestinians.
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for all sides to abide fully by the terms on the hostage agreement. “Immediate and unimpeded entry of humanitarian supplies and essential commercial materials into Gaza must be ensured. The suffering must end,” he said in a statement.

Hamas seeks release of Palestinian prisoners

Hamas said earlier on Wednesday it had handed over its lists of the hostages it held and the Palestinian prisoners held by Israel that it wanted to be exchanged.
The list of Palestinians Hamas wants freed was expected to include some of the most prominent prisoners ever jailed by Israel, whose release had been off limits in previous ceasefires.
According to a Palestinian source close to the talks, the list includes Marwan Al-Barghouti, a leader of the Fatah movement, and Ahmed Saadat, head of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine. Both are serving multiple life sentences for involvement in attacks that killed Israelis.
Hamas has so far refused to discuss Israel’s demand that Hamas give up its arms, which the Palestinian source said Hamas would reject as long as Israeli troops occupy Palestinian land.
Two sources familiar with the talks confirmed that sticking points included the mechanism for the Israeli withdrawal, with Hamas seeking a clear timeline linked to the release of hostages and guarantees of a complete pullout by Israeli forces.
Within Gaza, Israel has dialled down its military campaign at Trump’s behest, but it has not halted strikes altogether.
Gaza medical authorities reported eight people killed in Israeli strikes in the last 24 hours, the lowest toll for weeks. Daily death tolls had been around 10 times as high over the past month as Israeli forces advance on Gaza City.
Arab countries say plan must lead to Palestinian state
The next phase of Trump’s plan calls for an international body led by Trump and including former British Prime Minister Tony Blair to play a role in Gaza’s post-war administration. Arab countries which back the plan say it must lead to eventual independence for a Palestinian state, which Netanyahu says will never happen.
There is no clear indication who will rule Gaza when the war ends. Netanyahu, Trump, Western and Arab states have ruled out a role for Hamas, which has run Gaza since driving out Palestinian rivals in 2007.
Hamas has said it would relinquish Gaza governance only to a Palestinian technocrat government supervised by the Palestinian Authority and backed by Arab and Muslim countries. It rejects any role for Blair or foreign rule of Gaza.
Global outrage has mounted against Israel’s assault. Multiple rights experts, scholars and a UN inquiry say it amounts to genocide. Israel calls its actions self-defense after the 2023 Hamas attack.


US targets Chinese companies over drone components used by Hamas, Houthis

US targets Chinese companies over drone components used by Hamas, Houthis
Updated 09 October 2025

US targets Chinese companies over drone components used by Hamas, Houthis

US targets Chinese companies over drone components used by Hamas, Houthis
  • 10 China companies in sanctions list for facilitating the purchase of components allegedly found in weaponized Houthi drones
  • 5 more companies also sanctioned after components were found in weaponized drones operated by Hamas

WASHINGTON: The United States said on Wednesday it was adding 15 Chinese companies to its restricted trade list for facilitating the purchase of American electronic components found in drones operated by Iranian proxies including Houthi and Hamas militants.
Ten companies in China were placed on the Commerce Department’s Entity List for facilitating the purchase of components found in weaponized unmanned aircraft systems operated by proxies including Yemen’s Houthi militants, according to a post in the Federal Register.
Five additional Chinese companies were listed after information that around October 7, 2023, Israel Defense Forces recovered numerous weaponized unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) operated by Iranian proxies including Hamas, the post said, and the debris showed multiple US-origin electronic components.
Hamas-led militants staged an attack in Israel that day that killed 1,200 people, according to Israeli tallies, and triggered the war in Gaza.
In all, the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security is adding 29 entries to the list.
Arrow China Electronics Trading in Shanghai and other Chinese cities and Arrow Electronics (Hong Kong) are among the companies being placed on the list over US components for weaponized drones operated by Iranian proxies like the Houthis.
Both companies are subsidiaries of Centennial, Colorado-based Arrow Electronics, a components distributor which says it had global 2024 sales of $28 billion.
The companies have been and are continuing to operate in compliance with export regulations and the law, according to a statement from the US-headquartered company.
“We are in discussion with BIS concerning these listings and will provide further details as soon as they become available,” Arrow spokesperson John Hourigan said in the statement. “In the meantime, we will work to minimize supply chain disruptions to our partners.”
The US also added another Chinese company to the list for being part of an illicit network that obtains and supplies UAV and other components to front companies of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ Quds Force (IRGC-QF).
Companies are placed on the Commerce Department’s Entity List for activities deemed contrary to US national security and foreign policy interests. Licenses are required to export to companies on the list, and are likely to be denied. 


Palestinian man shot dead by Israeli settler in West Bank near Ramallah

Palestinian man shot dead by Israeli settler in West Bank near Ramallah
Updated 09 October 2025

Palestinian man shot dead by Israeli settler in West Bank near Ramallah

Palestinian man shot dead by Israeli settler in West Bank near Ramallah
  • Palestinian Red Crescent Society says 26-year-old Jihad Mohammed Ajaj was hit by several bullets
  • The settler stopped Palestinian vehicles on a main road before opening fire, says the head of local town council

LONDON: A 26-year-old man was killed on Wednesday evening when an Israeli settler opened fire on a group of Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, east of Ramallah.

Jihad Mohammed Ajaj was shot on a main road between the towns of Deir Jarir and Silwad. He was taken to the Palestine Medical Complex in Ramallah but could not be saved, the Palestinian Wafa news agency reported.

Fathi Hamdan, the head of Deir Jarir Council, said the settler had stopped Palestinian vehicles on the road before shooting at a group of people who approached him.

The Palestinian Red Crescent Society said Ajaj was hit by several bullets, and two other people were wounded, one in the groin and the other in the abdomen.

Attacks by Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank have increased sharply since October 2023. They have blocked roads used by Palestinians, targeted private and commercial properties, and sabotaged agricultural land in a number of places over the past two years.

Ajaj is the 13th Palestinian killed by Israeli settlers this year, and the 34th since Oct. 7, 2023, Wafa said.


UN staff member released from Houthi detention in Yemen, UN spokesperson says

UN staff member released from Houthi detention in Yemen, UN spokesperson says
Updated 09 October 2025

UN staff member released from Houthi detention in Yemen, UN spokesperson says

UN staff member released from Houthi detention in Yemen, UN spokesperson says
  • 53 UN staff remain detained by Houthis, some have been held since 2021

A United Nations staff member who was recently detained by Yemen’s Houthi authorities has been released, UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said on Wednesday.
“We continue to urge the de facto authorities to immediately and unconditionally release all UN and humanitarian workers who are supporting the most vulnerable people in Yemen,” Dujarric said.
He did not provide information about the timing or circumstances of the detention, which comes after nine other UN personnel were detained by Houthis.
Dujarric said 53 UN staff remain detained by Houthis, adding that some have been held since 2021.
Yemen has been the focus of one of the world’s largest humanitarian operations during a decade of civil war that disrupted food supplies. WFP says it provided assistance to 15.3 million people, or 47 percent of the population, in 2023.
WFP was among the UN offices raided by Houthis in the Yemeni capital Sanaa in August. Eleven UN personnel were detained as a result of the raid.
The raid, which followed an Israeli strike on Sanaa that killed the prime minister of the Houthi-run government and several other ministers, was condemned by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who described the detentions as “intolerable.”
Houthi officials said last month that the UN personnel’s legal immunities should not shield espionage activities.
The Houthi-run foreign ministry also accused the UN of bias for condemning what they called “legal measures taken by the government against spy cells involved in crimes,” while failing to denounce the Israeli attack.