‘Hamas not showing good faith': Israel, US recall teams from Gaza truce talks
It marked the latest setback in efforts to secure a deal that would bring a ceasefire to Gaza, secure the release of Israeli hostages held by Hamas, and bring respite to Palestinians suffering a sharply worsening humanitarian crisis.
Witkoff said mediators had made a great effort but "Hamas does not appear to be coordinated or acting in good faith". "We will now consider alternative options to bring the hostages home and try to create a more stable environment for the people of Gaza," he wrote on X.
There was no immediate reaction from Hamas.
An Israeli official with knowledge of the talks said Hamas' response to the latest ceasefire proposal "does not allow for progress without a concession" by the group but that Israel intended to continue discussions.
Both Israel and Hamas are facing pressure at home and abroad to reach a deal following almost two years of war, with the humanitarian situation inside Gaza deteriorating and Israelis worried about the conditions in which hostages are being held.
Dozens of people have starved to death in Gaza the last few weeks as a wave of hunger crashes on the enclave, according to local health authorities.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the suffering and starvation in Gaza was an "unspeakable and indefensible" humanitarian catastrophe and called on Israel to urgently let in aid.
"While the situation has been grave for some time, it has reached new depths and continues to worsen. We are witnessing a humanitarian catastrophe," Starmer said in a statement.
He will hold an emergency call with French and German partners on Friday to discuss what could be done to "stop the killing and get people the food they desperately need," he said.
The Gaza health ministry said two more people had died of malnutrition. The head of Shifa Hospital in Gaza City said the two were patients suffering from other illnesses who died after going without food for several days.
Earlier in the day, there had been some apparent signs of progress in the mediation.
A senior Hamas official told Reuters that there was still a chance of reaching a ceasefire deal but it would take a few days because of what he called Israeli stalling.
A senior Israeli official had been quoted by local media as saying the new text was something Israel could work with.
But, Israel's Channel 12 said a rapid deal was not within reach, with gaps remaining between the two sides, including over where the Israeli military should withdraw to during any truce.
Witkoff's team did not immediately respond to a request to explain the Hamas demands that led to his withdrawal of the U.S. negotiators.
The Hostages Families Forum, representing the family members of those held in Gaza, expressed concern at the recall of the Israeli team. "Each day that passes endangers the hostages' chances of recovery and risks losing the ability to locate the fallen or gain vital intelligence about them," it said.
PEPPER SPRAY FIRED AT AID SITE
Women going to fetch aid for their families on Thursday said U.S. contractors organising distribution asked them to come to pick up goods and then fired tear gas and pepper spray at them.
"The Americans said "go, go", and then said no, get back. They sprayed us with pepper spray so we went away. Five minutes later they shot tear gas at us ... is this American humanitarian aid?" said Mervat al-Sakani.
Asked for comment, a spokesperson for the aid organisation - the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation - said a limited amount of pepper spray was used 'to prevent civilian injury due to overcrowding', adding that GHF 'didn't want people to get hurt.' The spokesperson said women-only aid distribution had been "a major success" overall.
GHF, a U.S.-and Israeli-backed organization, began distributing food packages in Gaza at the end of May.
The U.N. has called the GHF's model unsafe and a breach of humanitarian impartiality standards, which GHF denies.
The U.N. rights office said on July 15 it had recorded at least 875 killings within the preceding six weeks in the vicinity of aid sites and food convoys in Gaza - the majority of them close to GHF distribution points.
Most of those deaths were caused by gunfire that locals have blamed on the Israeli military. The military has acknowledged that civilians were harmed, saying that Israeli forces had been issued new instructions with "lessons learned".
Israel, which cut off all supplies to Gaza from the start of March and reopened it with new restrictions in May, says it is committed to allowing in aid but must control it to prevent Hamas diverting it.
Israel says it has let in enough food for Gazans, and blames the United Nations for being slow to deliver it; the U.N. says it is operating as effectively as possible under conditions imposed by Israel.
The war began when Hamas killed some 1,200 people and took 251 hostages in its October 7 attacks on Israel, according to Israeli tallies. Israel has since killed nearly 60,000 Palestinians in Gaza, according to Gaza health authorities.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hindu
a few seconds ago
- The Hindu
Israel begins daily pause in fighting in three Gaza areas to allow 'minimal' aid as hunger grows
The Israeli military Sunday (July 27, 2025) began limited pauses in fighting in three populated areas of Gaza for 10 hours a day, part of measures including airdrops as concerns grow over surging hunger and as Israel faces criticism over its conduct in the 21-month war. The military said the 'tactical pause' from 10 am to 8 pm in Gaza City, Deir al-Balah and Muwasi, all with large populations, would increase humanitarian aid entering the territory. United Nations humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher welcomed Israel's decision to support a 'one-week scale-up of aid" and said 'some movement restrictions appear to have been eased." But he said action needs to be sustained, vast and fast. 'Whichever path we choose, we will have to continue to allow the entry of minimal humanitarian supplies," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said. Images of emaciated children have fanned criticism of Israel, including by allies who call for the war's end. Israel has restricted aid to Gaza's population of over 2 million because it says Hamas siphons it off to bolster its rule, without providing evidence. Much of the population, squeezed into ever-smaller patches of land, now relies on aid. As the military had warned, combat operations continued otherwise. Health officials in Gaza said Israeli strikes killed at least 41 Palestinians from late Saturday into Sunday, including 26 seeking aid. 'I came to get flour for my children because they have not tasted flour for more than a week, and thank God, God provided me with a kilo of rice with difficulty,' said Sabreen Hassona, as other Palestinians trudged along a dusty road carrying sacks of food from the Zikim crossing. But aid came slowly for others, if at all. 'We saw the planes, but we didn't see what they dropped,' Samira Yahya said in Zawaida in central Gaza. 'They said trucks would pass, but we didn't see the trucks.' Some people feared going out and having a box of aid fall on their children, Ahmed al-Sumairi said. Israel's military said 28 aid packages containing food were airdropped, and said it would put in place secure routes for aid delivery. It said the steps were made in coordination with the UN and other humanitarian groups. The UN World Food Program said it had enough food in, or on its way, to feed all of Gaza for nearly three months. It has said nearly half a million people were enduring famine-like conditions. Antoine Renard, WFP's country director for the occupied Palestinian territories, said around 80 WFP trucks entered Gaza, while another over 130 trucks arrived via Jordan, Ashdod and Egypt. He said other aid was moving through the Kerem Shalom and Zikim crossings. He stressed it was not enough to counter the 'current starvation.' Gaza saw 63 malnutrition-related deaths in July, including 24 children underage 5, the World Health Organization said. Dr. Muneer al-Boursh, Gaza Health Ministry's director-general, called for a flood of medical supplies to treat child malnutrition. 'This (humanitarian) truce will mean nothing if it doesn't turn into a real opportunity to save lives,' he said. 'Every delay is measured by another funeral.' Ceasefire efforts appeared to be in doubt. Israel and the US recalled negotiating teams from Qatar on Thursday, blaming Hamas, and Israel said it was considering 'alternative options' to talks. Israel says it is prepared to end the war if Hamas surrenders, disarms and goes into exile, something the group has refused. Khalil al-Hayya, head of Hamas' negotiating delegation, said the group had displayed 'maximum flexibility.' Senior Hamas official Mahmoud Merdawi said Israel's change of approach on the humanitarian crisis amounted to an acknowledgment of Palestinians starving in Gaza, and asserted that it was meant to improve Israel's international standing and not save lives. After ending the latest ceasefire in March, Israel cut off the entry of food, medicine, fuel and other supplies to Gaza for two and half months, saying it aimed to pressure Hamas to release hostages. Fifty of them remain in Gaza, over half of them believed to be dead. Under international pressure, Israel slightly eased the blockade in May. Since then, the average of 69 trucks a day has been far below the 500 to 600 trucks the UN says are needed. The UN says it has been unable to distribute much aid because hungry crowds and gangs take most of it from trucks. In an attempt to divert aid delivery from UN control, Israel has backed the US-registered Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, which in May opened four distribution centers. More than 1,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces since May while trying to get food, mostly near those sites, the UN human rights office says. Israel asserts the UN system allows Hamas to steal aid. The UN denies it. 'Gaza is not a remote island. The infrastructure and resources exist to prevent starvation; we just need safe, sustained access,' Mercy Corps' vice president of global policy and advocacy, Kate Phillips-Barrasso, said in a statement. Awda Hospital in Nuseirat said Israeli forces killed at least 13 people, including four children and a woman, and wounded 101 as they headed toward a GHF aid distribution site in central Gaza. Israel's military said it fired warning shots to prevent a 'gathering of suspects' from approaching, hundreds of meters from the site before opening hours. GHF said there were no incidents at or near its sites. Israel's military said two soldiers were killed in Gaza, bringing the total to 898 since the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack that sparked the war. Hamas killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians, in that attack, and took 251 hostages. Israel's retaliatory offensive has killed more than 59,700 Palestinians, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. Its count doesn't distinguish between militants and civilians, but the ministry says over half of the dead are women and children.
Indian Express
2 hours ago
- Indian Express
Vijai Sharma, Kyoto Protocol architect & India's ex-chief climate negotiator, dies
For over a decade and a half, Vijai Sharma fought for the rights of India and other developing countries at the international climate negotiations. He was one of the architects of the 1997 Kyoto Protocol, which strongly safeguarded the interests of the developing countries, and ensured that the primary responsibility of reducing the impacts of climate change was taken by the rich and the developed world. A 1974-batch IAS officer, who served as the Environment Secretary and then as Chief Information Commissioner, Sharma died in the United States, where he was visiting his son on July 23, after suffering a stroke, family sources said. He was 75. Sharma lived in Lucknow. Sharma had two productive stints in the Environment Ministry. During his first stint as joint secretary, between 1995 and 2001, he became India's chief negotiator at international climate talks, which had just been initiated, and strongly influenced the finalisation of the Kyoto Protocol. He was also instrumental in ensuring that Delhi hosted these talks COP8 in 2002. After stints in the Cabinet Secretariat, and other places, Sharma returned to the Environment Ministry as its Secretary in 2008. By this time, the developed countries had already begun the process of dismantling the Kyoto Protocol, and replacing it with something they were more comfortable with. This was also the time when India's environmental governance came under great scrutiny, with an increasing number of industrial and infrastructure projects testing the environmental norms. Sharma presided over a period of strengthening of India's environmental regulatory structure to bring in greater transparency. 'Vijay Sharma was the quintessential civil servant — fearless in giving advice but faithful in execution even when his advice was not taken. I have many fond memories of my close association with him for a decade and a half. He had wide interests and possessed an irreverent sense of humour. He loved it when he himself became the subject of humour, laughing at the description I once gave him — Sir Humphrey Sharma (Humphrey Appleby was a character from the British TV series Yes Minister),' said Jairam Ramesh, then Environment Minister under whom Sharma served as Secretary. After retiring, Sharma became an expert member at the National Green Tribunal, a new institution created during his time, before being appointed the Chief Information Commissioner. Sharma, who had a postgraduate law degree from Harvard University, had a passion for history, and authored, along with his wife and IAS officer Rita Sharma, a few books on the forts of India. But he continued to be sought out for his expertise on environment and climate law and policy. 'As an administrator he had a keen eye for details. He used to recall with great pride how he had to burn midnight oil, as G77 and China coordinator in the climate negotiations, to shape the rules of the carbon market under the Kyoto Protocol. He was also quite proud of his contribution to the introduction of CNG buses in Delhi under the Supreme Court orders and recounted in detail how the decision was implemented. His departure leaves a void in the world of climate negotiators of the Kyoto era. He will be deeply missed by those who worked with him when India's climate policy was still shaping up in the early years of this century,' said R R Rashmi, former IAS officer and chief negotiator on climate talks himself.
India Today
2 hours ago
- India Today
Israel will have to make decision, says Trump as Gaza crisis worsens
Amid the worsening humanitarian situation in Gaza and the breakdown of delicate negotiations, US President Donald Trump on Sunday said that Israel would have to make a critical decision regarding the ongoing war in Gaza. Speaking to reporters in Scotland, Trump acknowledged the collapse of the ceasefire and hostage-release talks with Hamas had complicated the path ahead."They don't want to give them back, and so Israel is going to have to make a decision," Trump said of the hostages held by Palestinian militants. However, he declined to reveal his personal view on Israel's next also accused Hamas of stealing food supplies meant for Gaza and selling them, contradicting an internal US government report. According to news agency Reuters, US officials found no proof of theft of humanitarian aid by Hamas. Despite tensions, Trump pledged increased humanitarian aid to Gaza, but also called on other countries, particularly in Europe, to share the responsibility. "We're giving a lot of money, a lot of food, a lot of everything," Trump said. "If we weren't there, I think people would have starved, frankly. They would have starved."Trump seemed frustrated over what he called a lack of gratitude from European nations. "No other country gave anything," he said. "It makes you feel a little bad when you do that, and, you know, you have other countries not giving anything Nobody gave but us. And nobody said, Gee, thank you very much."The president also mentioned discussions with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer about the CONSIDERS ALTERNATIVE MEASURESThe deadlock over ceasefire and hostage negotiations has hardened positions. Netanyahu said that Israel is considering "alternative" measures to bring home hostages and dismantle Hamas's control of backed Netanyahu, saying, "Hamas really didn't want to make a deal. I think they want to die And it got to be to a point where you're going to have to finish the job." He predicted that Hamas leaders would be "hunted down" following the collapse of CRISIS WORSENS AMID BLOODSHEDThe humanitarian situation in Gaza has deteriorated sharply in the past few months. Gaza's health ministry reported that more than 130 people, including 87 children, have died from malnutrition and hunger since the start of Israel's assault. Over the past 24 hours alone, six new deaths related to starvation have been of starvation and suffering have sparked alarm. Former President Barack Obama condemned the blockade on aid supplies, writing on X, "There is no justification for keeping food and water away from civilian families,' and calling for urgent action 'to prevent the travesty of innocent people dying of preventable starvation."advertisementOver 20 Democratic US senators also sent a letter to the Trump administration urging it to end funding for the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation -- a new private aid group -- and to restore support for the UN's aid distribution. The United Nations claims Israeli forces have killed more than 1,000 people near GHF's food distribution current bloodshed traces back to October 2023, when Hamas launched a deadly attack on Israel, killing around 1,200 people and taking approximately 250 hostages, according to Israeli response, Israel's military assault on Gaza has resulted in nearly 60,000 Palestinian deaths, according to Gaza's health ministry. The assault has displaced the almost entire population of Gaza, devastated infrastructure, and led to a severe hunger crisis.- EndsWith inputs from AgenciesTune InMust Watch
