&w=3840&q=100)
Gaza awaits peace: First round of ceasefire talks end in Qatar; Israel, Hamas stay divided
This picture taken from the grounds of the Ahli Arab Hospital, also known as the Maamadani (Baptist) Hospital, shows a cloud of smoke erupting following Israeli bombardment on a building in the Daraj neighbourhood of Gaza City on May 31, 2025. (AFP)
The latest round of Gaza ceasefire talks between Israel and Hamas resumed and shortly ended without a breakthrough, a Palestinian official familiar with the negotiation confirmed. The official told the BBC that the session lasted for nearly three and a half hours and took place at two separate buildings in Doha.
Both the Israeli and Hamas side shared their message and clarifications through Qatari and Egyptian mediators. However, no progress was achieved during the negotiation phase. It is pertinent to note that talks were held at a time when Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is heading to Washington, DC to meet US President Donald Trump. The Gaza ceasefire is most likely to be a topic of discussion between the two leaders.
STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD
Meanwhile, the Palestinian official noted that the second round of talks is expected to resume on Monday as mediators plan to hold separate meetings with each delegation to overcome obstacles and narrow the gaps between the two sides.
The prologue to the talks
On Sunday, Israel dispatched a negotiating team to Qatar for indirect talks with Hamas focused on a ceasefire and hostage release deal. Hamas, in turn, proposed three key amendments to the US- and Israel-backed ceasefire framework. This included:
Continuation of talks until a permanent ceasefire is reached.
Full presumption of humanitarian aid via UN-backed agencies.
Israel's withdrawal to the pre-March ceasefire position.
In response to this, Israel's Prime Minister's Office declared these Hamas demands 'unacceptable' but proceeded with the delegation's departure. The current US and Israel-backed ceasefire proposal includes a 60-day ceasefire, staged release of hostages (10 live and 18 deceased), and increased humanitarian aid.
Israel has been adamant about a phased approach without guarantees of a permanent truce, wary of Hamas maintaining control over Gaza. Meanwhile, Israel's PM is also facing domestic pressure from his far-right allies as he heads to the US. Several Israeli far-right politicians have been opposing the ceasefire, something they did before as well.
How the recent talks went down
While speaking to Reuters, two other Palestinian officials noted that the Israeli delegation was not 'sufficiently authorised' to reach an agreement with Hamas because it had 'no real powers'. Netanyahu, on the other hand, thinks his meeting with Trump should help progress efforts to reach a deal for the release of more hostages and a ceasefire in Gaza.
The Qatari and Egyptian officials noted that for now, Hamas still seems to be holding out for essentially the same conditions it has previously insisted on - including a guarantee of an end to all hostilities at the end of any truce and the withdrawal of Israeli troops. However, the Israeli delegation outrightly rejected the amendments during the talks.
While speaking to the reporters before heading to the US, Netanyahu made his stance on the matter extremely clear. 'The release and return of all the hostages, the living and the fallen; the destruction of Hamas's capabilities - to kick it out of there, and to ensure that Gaza will no longer constitute a threat to Israel,' the Israeli premier averred.
STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD
Things became more complicated as Israel resumed its offensive against Hamas with great intensity. They imposed an eleven-week blockade on aid entering Gaza, which was partially lifted several weeks ago. Just in the past 24 hours, the Israeli military said that it has struck 130 Hamas targets and killed several militants. The Israeli government argued that these measures are aimed at further weakening Hamas and forcing it to negotiate and free the hostages.
Overall, the question now is not only whether the talks in Qatar can achieve their goals, but also whether Trump can persuade Netanyahu that the war must come to an end at their meeting on Monday.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Economic Times
20 minutes ago
- Economic Times
Mass job cuts, layoffs soon in U.S? Check who will be fired?
Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads FAQs U.S. Supreme Court cleared the way on Tuesday for President Donald Trump's administration to resume carrying out mass job cuts and the restructuring of agencies, elements of his campaign to downsize and reshape the federal government. The justices lifted San Francisco-based U.S. District Judge Susan Illston's May 22 order that had blocked large-scale federal layoffs called "reductions in force" affecting potentially hundreds of thousands of jobs, while litigation in the case proceeds. Trump in February announced "a critical transformation of the federal bureaucracy" in an executive order directing agencies to prepare for a government overhaul aimed at significantly reducing the federal workforce and gutting offices and programs opposed by the administration. Workforce reductions were planned at the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Commerce, Health and Human Services, State, Treasury, Veterans Affairs and more than a dozen other wrote in her ruling that Trump had exceeded his authority in ordering the downsizing, siding with a group of unions, non-profits and local governments that challenged the administration. "As history demonstrates, the president may broadly restructure federal agencies only when authorized by Congress," Illston judge blocked the agencies from carrying out mass layoffs and limited their ability to cut or overhaul federal programs. Illston also ordered the reinstatement of workers who had lost their jobs, though she delayed implementing this portion of her ruling while the appeals process plays ruling was the broadest of its kind against the government overhaul being pursued by Trump and the Department of Government Efficiency, a key player in the Republican president's drive to slash the federal spearheaded by billionaire Elon Musk, DOGE has sought to eliminate federal jobs, shrink and reshape the U.S. government and root out what they see as wasteful spending. Musk formally ended his government work on May 30 and subsequently had a public falling out with San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in a 2-1 ruling on May 30 denied the administration's request to halt the judge's 9th Circuit said the administration had not shown that it would suffer an irreparable injury if the judge's order remained in place and that the plaintiffs were likely to prevail in their lawsuit."The executive order at issue here far exceeds the president's supervisory powers under the Constitution," the 9th Circuit wrote, calling the administration's actions "an unprecedented attempted restructuring of the federal government and its operations."The 9th Circuit's ruling prompted the Justice Department's June 2 emergency request to the Supreme Court to halt Illston's the personnel of federal agencies "lies at the heartland" of the president's executive branch authority, the Justice Department said in its filing to the Supreme Court."The Constitution does not erect a presumption against presidential control of agency staffing, and the president does not need special permission from Congress to exercise core Article II powers," the filing said, referring to the constitution's section delineating presidential plaintiffs urged the Supreme Court to deny the Justice Department's request. Allowing the Trump administration to move forward with its "breakneck reorganization," they wrote, would mean that "programs, offices and functions across the federal government will be abolished, agencies will be radically downsized from what Congress authorized, critical government services will be lost and hundreds of thousands of federal employees will lose their jobs."The Supreme Court in recent months has sided with Trump in some major cases that were acted upon on an emergency basis since he returned to office in cleared the way for Trump's administration to resume deporting migrants to countries other than their own without offering them a chance to show the harms they could face. In two cases, it let the administration end temporary legal status previously granted on humanitarian grounds to hundreds of thousands of also allowed Trump to implement his ban on transgender people in the U.S. military, blocked a judge's order for the administration to rehire thousands of fired employees and twice sided with his Department of Government Efficiency.A1. The full form of DOGE is Department of Government Efficiency.A2. President of USA is Donald Trump.
News18
32 minutes ago
- News18
Trump Says Gaza Ceasefire Talks in Final Stages Trump Netanyahu Meeting Israel Gaza
During today's White House meeting with Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu, former President Donald Trump revealed that Gaza ceasefire talks are nearing the finish line, with Israeli officials and mediators in Doha expressing cautious optimism. Both leaders emphasized U.S.-backed efforts to finalize a 60-day truce, including hostage releases and phased Israeli withdrawals. Mobile App -
The Hindu
34 minutes ago
- The Hindu
U.S. Supreme Court clears way for Trump's plans to downsize federal workforce
The Supreme Court on Tuesday (July 8, 2025) cleared the way for President Donald Trump's plans to downsize the federal workforce despite warnings that critical government services will be lost and hundreds of thousands of federal employees will be out of their jobs. The Justices overrode lower court orders that temporarily froze the cuts, which have been led by the Department of Government Efficiency. The Court said in an unsigned order that no specific cuts were in front of the justices, only an executive order issued by Mr. Trump and an administration directive for agencies to undertake job reductions. Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson was the only dissenting vote, accusing her colleagues of a 'demonstrated enthusiasm for greenlighting this President's legally dubious actions in an emergency posture.' Mr. Trump has repeatedly said voters gave him a mandate to remake the federal government, and he tapped billionaire ally Elon Musk to lead the charge through DOGE. Mr. Musk recently left his role. Downsizing of federal workforce Tens of thousands of federal workers have been fired, have left their jobs via deferred resignation programs or have been placed on leave. There is no official figure for the job cuts, but at least 75,000 federal employees took deferred resignation and thousands of probationary workers have already been let go. In May, U.S. District Judge Susan Illston found that Trump's administration needs congressional approval to make sizable reductions to the federal workforce. By a 2-1 vote, a panel of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals refused to block Illston's order, finding that the downsizing could have broader effects, including on the nation's food-safety system and health care for veterans. Illston directed numerous federal agencies to halt acting on the President's workforce executive order signed in February and a subsequent memo issued by DOGE and the Office of Personnel Management. Illston was nominated by former Democratic President Bill Clinton. The labor unions and nonprofit groups that sued over the downsizing offered the justices several examples of what would happen if it were allowed to take effect, including cuts of 40% to 50% at several agencies. Among the agencies affected by the order are the departments of Agriculture, Energy, Labour, the Interior, State, the Treasury and Veterans Affairs. It also applies to the National Science Foundation, Small Business Association, Social Security Administration and Environmental Protection Agency.
