1724147567-0%2FBeFunky-collage%5D_____-(23)1724147567-0-640x480.webp&w=3840&q=100)
No progress in first round of Hamas-Israel ceasefire talks: Palestinian sources
Listen to article
The first session of indirect ceasefire talks between Hamas and Israel, held in Qatar, ended without a breakthrough, two Palestinian sources familiar with the matter said early Monday. The sources added that the Israeli delegation lacked the authority to reach an agreement with Hamas.
The talks resumed on Sunday ahead of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's third visit to the White House since US President Donald Trump returned to office nearly six months ago.
'After the first session of indirect negotiations in Doha, the Israeli delegation is not sufficiently authorized to reach an agreement with Hamas, as it has no real powers,' the sources told Reuters.
Read More: Israel to send delegation to Qatar for Gaza ceasefire and hostage deal talks
Netanyahu, before departing for Washington, said Israeli negotiators had clear instructions to pursue a ceasefire under conditions previously accepted by Israel.
On Saturday evening, crowds gathered in Tel Aviv's public square near the defence ministry headquarters to demand a ceasefire deal and the return of approximately 50 hostages still held in Gaza. Demonstrators waved Israeli flags, chanted slogans, and held posters with images of the hostages.
The current wave of violence in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas launched an attack on southern Israel, killing around 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages, according to Israeli figures. Around 20 of those hostages are believed to still be alive. While many have been released through diplomatic efforts, others were recovered by Israeli military operations.
Gaza's health ministry reports that Israel's retaliatory military campaign has killed more than 57,000 Palestinians, caused widespread displacement, created a severe hunger crisis, and left much of the territory in ruins.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
1726378901-0%2FBeFunk_-(71)1726378901-0-640x480.webp&w=3840&q=100)
Express Tribune
11 minutes ago
- Express Tribune
At least three dead as Greek-operated ship attacked in Red Sea
Yemen's Houthi tribesmen gathered, on February 4, to show defiance following US and UK air strikes on Houthi positions near Sanaa. PHOTO:REUTERS Listen to article Three crew members were killed and at least two others injured after a Greek-operated, Liberian-flagged bulk carrier, Eternity C, came under attack off the coast of Yemen, the EU naval mission Aspides confirmed on Tuesday. The ship was struck by sea drones and rocket-propelled grenades launched from manned speedboats in the Red Sea, a vital global trade route now gripped by renewed Houthi militia attacks. The Eternity C, with 22 crew members on board – 21 Filipinos and one Russian – is now adrift and listing, maritime sources said. The fatalities mark the first shipping deaths in the region since June 2024 and raise the total seafarers killed in Red Sea attacks to seven. The Iran-aligned Houthis, who began targeting commercial vessels in November 2023 in what they describe as support for Palestinians in Gaza, have not yet claimed responsibility for the latest incident. Hours earlier, however, they had claimed an attack on another Liberian-flagged, Greek-operated vessel, MV Magic Seas, off southwest Yemen. While the Houthis said the ship sank, the vessel's manager could not confirm the report. All crew members from Magic Seas were safely rescued and taken to Djibouti. Read More: Ship attacked in Red Sea near Yemen, likely by Houthis, say officials Liberia's delegation to the International Maritime Organization (IMO) condemned the attacks and expressed grief, stating: "Just as Liberia was processing the shock and grief of the attack against Magic Seas, we received a report that Eternity C again has been attacked—horribly—causing the death of two seafarers." The IMO Secretary-General, Arsenio Dominguez, described the renewed assaults as a violation of international law and freedom of navigation, saying innocent seafarers and local communities remain the primary victims. Both Eternity C and Magic Seas are linked to commercial fleets whose sister ships have docked at Israeli ports in the past year, increasing their risk of targeting by the Houthis. Maritime intelligence experts caution that, as long as the Gaza conflict continues, vessels with real or perceived connections to Israel will remain at elevated risk Also read: Israel strikes Houthi ports and power station in Yemen In response to the attacks, the Philippines' Department of Migrant Workers has advised Filipino seafarers to exercise their right to refuse deployment to "high-risk, war-like" zones, including the Red Sea. Shipping traffic through the Red Sea has declined by around 50% since the first Houthi strikes in 2023, according to Jakob Larsen, chief safety and security officer at shipping association BIMCO. He added that the continued unpredictability means this reduction is unlikely to change despite the latest escalation. Monday's deadly strike on the Eternity C, approximately 50 nautical miles southwest of Yemen's Hodeidah port, is the second such attack in the region since November 2024, underscoring the volatile security landscape for commercial shipping.
Business Recorder
36 minutes ago
- Business Recorder
South African rand steady on hopes for further trade talks with the US
JOHANNESBURG: The South African rand was steady on Tuesday, buoyed by hopes the country could still salvage a less damaging trade deal with the United States after President Donald Trump extended a tariff deadline to August 1. Trump informed Pretoria and more than a dozen other trading partners of sharply higher trade levies in a wave of letters sent out on Monday. South Africa is facing a 30% trade tariff on its exports to the U.S., but the extended deadline has opened a window for further negotiations. At 1351 GMT, the rand traded at 17.8150 against the dollar , up roughly 0.3% on Monday's close, seemingly clawing back some of its losses after falling well over 1%. The risk-sensitive currency was already reeling after Trump threatened an additional 10% tariff on any country aligning with what he called the 'Anti-American policies' of the BRICS group of big emerging markets, which South Africa is a member of. The U.S. is South Africa's second-largest bilateral trading partner after China. In addition to minerals, car parts and other manufactured goods, South Africa exports agricultural products to the U.S. and stands to lose about 35,000 jobs in the citrus industry if the tariffs take effect. South African rand falls, US bill and tariff updates in focus South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said the 30% tariff rate is not an accurate representation of available trade data, though negotiations between the two nations will continue. Ramaphosa also urged South African companies to diversify their customer base beyond the U.S. 'While strategically sound, this is not an easy shift to make in the short term,' said George Herman, Chief Investment Officer at Citadel. 'It's difficult to see what bargaining power South Africa holds, especially given U.S. President Donald Trump's negatively biased view…' Trump confronted Ramaphosa earlier this year with false claims of white genocide and land seizures and has criticised South Africa's genocide court case against Israel. The Johannesburg Stock Exchange's Top-40 index was last up 0.2%. South Africa's benchmark 2035 government bond was weaker, as the yield rose 5.5 basis points to 9.88%.
Business Recorder
4 hours ago
- Business Recorder
Gaza ceasefire can be reached but may take more time, Israeli officials say
JERUSALEM/GAZA: Gaps in Gaza ceasefire talks under way in Qatar between Israel and Hamas can be bridged but it may take more than a few days to reach a deal, Israeli officials said on Tuesday. The new push by U.S., Qatari and Egyptian mediators to halt fighting in the battered enclave has gained pace since Sunday when the warring sides began indirect talks in Doha and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu set out to Washington. Netanyahu met on Monday with U.S. President Donald Trump, who said on the eve of their meeting that a ceasefire and hostage deal could be reached this week. The Israeli leader was scheduled to meet Vice President J.D. Vance on Tuesday. Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff, who played a major role in crafting the ceasefire proposal, will travel to Doha this week to join discussions there, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters earlier on Monday. The ceasefire proposal envisages a phased release of hostages, Israeli troop withdrawals from parts of Gaza and discussions on ending the war entirely. Hamas says ready to start Gaza ceasefire talks 'immediately' Hamas has long demanded an end to the war before it would free remaining hostages; Israel has insisted it would not agree to end the fighting until all hostages are released and Hamas dismantled. At least 20 of the remaining 50 hostages in Gaza are believed to still be alive. Palestinian sources said on Monday that there were gaps between the sides on the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza. Senior Israeli officials briefing journalists in Washington said it may take more than a few days to finalize agreements in Doha but they did not elaborate on the sticking points. Another Israeli official said progress had been made. Israeli minister Zeev Elkin, who sits in Netanyahu's security cabinet, said that there was 'a substantial chance' a ceasefire will be agreed. 'Hamas wants to change a few central matters, it's not simple, but there is progress,' he told Israel's public broadcaster Kan on Tuesday. Israel's subsequent campaign against Hamas in Gaza has since killed more than 57,000 Palestinians, according to local health authorities, displaced almost the entire population of more than 2 million people, sparked a humanitarian crisis in the enclave and left much of the territory in ruins. Saudi Arabia's current priority is a permanent Gaza ceasefire, foreign minister says In Gaza City, children walked through debris, where residents said an Israeli airstrike had hit overnight, with children among the casualties. The Israeli military did not immediately provide details on the target of the strike. 'We hope that a ceasefire will be reached and that the massacres against the Palestinian people will stop,' said Mohammed Joundiya, standing in the rubble left in the aftermath of the attack. At Israel's parliament in Jerusalem, former hostage Keith Siegel, who was released in February in a previous ceasefire, described the anguish of those held incommunicado for hundreds of days in Hamas captivity. 'We have a window of opportunity to save lives,' he said, 'every minute is critical.'
