‘No Food, Handcuffed, Treated Like Cattle': Newlywed Bride Recounts US Detention Ordeal
Ward Sakeik (22), was born in Saudi Arabia but doesn't hold citizenship in any country. She has lived in the United States since the age of 8, but was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials in February at the Miami International Airport after returning from her honeymoon in the US Virgin Islands with her husband, Taahir Shaikh, a US citizen.
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Hindustan Times
2 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
Gaza ceasefire soon? What Israel, Hamas and the US have said
A fresh round of ceasefire talks are set to take place in Qatar between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas. This round comes after US president Donald Trump announced a 60-day truce for the Gaza war had been decided upon. This picture taken from a position at Israel's border with the Gaza Strip shows smoke billowing during an Israeli strike on the besieged Palestinian territory.(AFP) Following Trump's announcement and Hamas' 'positive response' to the agreement, Israel has sent a delegation to Doha for the latest round of talks. The war in Gaza broke out on October 7, 2023 after Hamas launched a terror attack in southern Israel. In response to this, Israel declared a "complete seize" of the Gaza Strip. Israel's war on Gaza has killed over 57,000 people since 2023, majority of whom have been attributed women and children. While Hamas announced 'positive response' to the ceasefire proposal shared by the US, Israel, however, is reportedly unhappy with the terms. What each side said on the Gaza truce United States US president Donald Trump, last week, announced that Israel had agreed to a 60-day truce in Gaza. Taking to Truth Social, the US president wrote - 'My Representatives had a long and productive meeting with the Israelis today on Gaza. Israel has agreed to the necessary conditions to finalize the 60 Day CEASEFIRE, during which time we will work with all parties to end the War.' The final decision on the truce between Israel and Hamas will be delivered by Qatar and Egypt, Trump added. Amid Fourth of July celebrations, the US president told reporters that the truce could come into force as soon as next week. Hamas In an official statement issued by the militant group, Hamas delivered a positive response to the ceasefire proposal. 'The Hamas movement has completed its internal consultations as well as discussions with Palestinian factions and forces regarding the latest proposal by the mediators to halt the aggression against our people in Gaza,' read the official statement, as per Reuters. "The movement has delivered its response to the brotherly mediators, which was characterized by a positive spirit. Hamas is fully prepared, with all seriousness, to immediately enter a new round of negotiations on the mechanism for implementing this framework," the statement added further. Israel While Israel has not released an official statement regarding truce developments, Trump stated that Tel Aviv had agreed to the proposal. As per Israeli media, Israel has 'received' Hamas' response and that the document was "under review." However, as per Al Jazeera, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is not happy with the proposal as he dispatched a team of negotiators to Doha. A statement from his office said that the "changes Hamas is requesting to make to the Qatari proposal were delivered to us last night and are unacceptable to Israel," reported Al Jazeera.
Hindustan Times
5 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
Israel agrees to Gaza truce talks as Netanyahu heads to Washington
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he was sending a team to Qatar Sunday for talks on a truce and hostage release in Gaza after Hamas said it was ready to start negotiations "immediately". Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is due to meet with US President Donald Trump in Washington on Monday.(REUTERS) But Netanyahu, who is due to meet with President Donald Trump in Washington on Monday, said the Palestinian Islamist group's proposals for changes to a draft US-backed ceasefire deal were "unacceptable". Trump has been making a renewed push to end nearly 21 months of war in Gaza, where the civil defence agency said 42 people were killed in Israeli military operations on Saturday. Hamas said Friday it was ready "to engage immediately and seriously" in negotiations, and was sending its responses to the truce proposal. "The changes that Hamas is seeking to make in the Qatari proposal were conveyed to us last night and are unacceptable to Israel," said a statement from Netanyahu's office. "In light of an assessment of the situation, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has directed that the invitation to proximity talks be accepted and that the contacts for the return of our hostages -- on the basis of the Qatari proposal that Israel has agreed to -- be continued," the statement added. Hamas has not publicly detailed its responses to the US-sponsored proposal, which was transmitted by mediators from Qatar and Egypt. Two Palestinian sources close to the discussions told AFP the proposal included a 60-day truce, during which Hamas would release 10 living hostages and several bodies in exchange for Palestinians detained by Israel. However, they said, the group was also demanding certain conditions for Israel's withdrawal, guarantees against a resumption of fighting during negotiations, and the return of the UN-led aid distribution system. Trump, when asked about Hamas's response aboard Air Force One, said: "That's good. They haven't briefed me on it. We have to get it over with. We have to do something about Gaza." The war in Gaza began with Hamas's October 2023 attack on Israel, which sparked a massive Israeli offensive in the territory that aimed to destroy the group and bring home all the hostages seized by Palestinian militants. Two previous ceasefires mediated by Qatar, Egypt and the United States secured temporary halts in fighting and the return of Israeli hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners. Of the 251 hostages taken by Palestinian militants during the October 2023 attack, 49 are still held in Gaza, including 27 the Israeli military says are dead. - 'Comprehensive deal' - The Egyptian foreign ministry said Saturday that top diplomat Badr Abdelatty held a phone call with Washington's main representative in the truce talks, Steve Witkoff, to discuss recent developments "and preparations for holding indirect meetings between the two parties concerned to reach an agreement". Meanwhile, at a weekly protest demanding the return of the hostages, Macabit Mayer, the aunt of captives Gali and Ziv Berman, called for a deal "that saves everyone", without exception. But recent efforts to broker a new truce have repeatedly failed, with the primary point of contention being Israel's rejection of Hamas's demand for a lasting ceasefire. The war has created dire humanitarian conditions for the more than two million people in the Gaza Strip. Karima al-Ras, from Khan Yunis in southern Gaza, said people were "happy that Hamas responded positively, and we hope that a truce will be announced" to allow in more aid. "People are dying for flour, and young people are dying as they try to provide flour for their children," she said. A US- and Israel-backed group, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, took the lead in food distribution in the territory in late May, when Israel partially lifted a more than two-month blockade on aid deliveries. The group said two of its US staff members were wounded "in a targeted terrorist attack" at one of its aid centres in southern Gaza's Khan Yunis on Saturday. The Israeli military said it had evacuated the injured. UN agencies and major aid groups have refused to cooperate with the GHF over concerns it was designed to cater to Israeli military objectives. UN human rights office spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani said Friday that more than 500 people have been killed waiting to access food from GHF distribution points. - Civil defence says 42 killed - Civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal said Israeli military operations killed 42 people across Gaza on Saturday. Media restrictions in Gaza and difficulties in accessing many areas mean AFP is unable to independently verify the tolls and details provided by the civil defence agency. Contacted by AFP, the Israeli military said it could not comment on specific strikes without precise coordinates. The Hamas attack of October 2023 resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli official figures. Israel's retaliatory campaign has killed at least 57,338 people in Gaza, also mostly civilians, according to the Hamas-run territory's health ministry. The United Nations considers the figures reliable.
Mint
7 hours ago
- Mint
Israel and Hamas have different reasons for pursuing Gaza deal
If Israel and Hamas complete negotiations brokered by the U.S., Qatar and Egypt, they would pause the nearly two-year-old war in Gaza, free Israeli hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners and allow more humanitarian aid into the hunger-striken enclave. Israel's military campaign against Iran last month has given Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a window to negotiate. The strikes on Iran followed more than a year in which Israel went on the offensive against Iran's allies, weakening Lebanon's Hezbollah movement and contributing to the collapse of the Assad regime in Syria. The Iran war, which set back Tehran's nuclear program and demonstrated Israel's military superiority over its main adversary in the region, could allow Netanyahu to push back on his right-wing coalition partners, who have threatened to abandon the government if he ends the war in Gaza. In Gaza, Hamas is under pressure from Palestinians demanding a reprieve from the crisis after more than three months in which Israel has restricted food and other supplies allowed into the enclave. Israel has also killed a series of top Hamas leaders in recent months. The Islamist group is also facing a cash crunch that is making it harder for it to pay its rank and file. The new proposal calls for a temporary, 60-day cease-fire that would buy time for mediators to attempt to broker a permanent end to the war, which could prove far more difficult than a temporary pause. Israel and Hamas have paused fighting twice before, in November 2023 and in January. 'It's not his preference, but Netanyahu has some interest in saying, OK I now have a new victory narrative after Iran," said Daniel Levy, a former Israeli official and negotiator. 'He can only begin to test the waters on whether that gives him a pronounced-enough political bounce if he goes into a temporary cease-fire." Hamas on Friday accepted the framework of the proposed two-month cease-fire, saying it was ready to enter 'serious negotiations" toward implementing the proposal. The current framework calls for a cease-fire that would trigger U.S.-backed negotiations to end the war. The proposal, put together by U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff along with mediators from Egypt and Qatar, includes the exchange of 10 living Israeli hostages for a larger number of Palestinian prisoners held by Israel. That formula—similar to language used in the January cease-fire and in months of negotiations since—is designed to bridge the positions of Israel, which doesn't want to commit up front to a permanent end to the war, and Hamas, which has demanded a guaranteed end to the war. Some questions would have to be resolved in a final round of indirect negotiations before a cease-fire could be declared. Among other issues, the manner and extent of Israeli military redeployments in Gaza and the quantities and delivery mechanism for humanitarian aid would have to be hammered out, according to officials and observers of the talks. Pressure from the Trump administration will also play an important role. Netanyahu is set to meet President Trump in Washington on Monday. The Israeli security cabinet is expected to discuss the possible cease-fire agreement during a meeting on Saturday night. Netanyahu has been under political pressure since Hamas's attack on Oct. 7, 2023, which killed some 1,200 people and seized another 250 hostages. Netanyahu has sought to increase his chances of remaining in power after a public outcry over the security and intelligence failures that led to the attack, political analysts say. Netanyahu has for years advocated for a hawkish policy on Iran including possible military action. 'He can't ignore the claim that he'd made for so long, which is, if you remove the Iranian threat, then a whole new vista opens up for what you can do in this region," Levy said. To capitalize on the Israeli public's broad support for the attack on Iran, Netanyahu is considering calling snap elections, according to a person close to the Netanyahu family. But he's still facing an uphill battle. He was already a divisive figure in Israel when his popularity took a massive hit after the Hamas attack. Before the Iranian offensive, polls showed that his current coalition would lose power if an election was held now. Also, families of the hostages have been taking to the streets for months, calling for an end to the war and a deal to bring home their relatives. The current proposal calls for Hamas to release 10 of the around 20 hostages Israel believes are still alive, along with bodies of some of the roughly 30 deceased hostages. Israel is also facing diplomatic pressure from allies to end the fighting in Gaza and ease the humanitarian crisis there. Israel's war against Hamas has reduced much of Gaza to rubble and killed more than 57,000 Palestinians, according to local health authorities, who don't say how many were combatants. In Gaza, Hamas is under pressure to accept a cease-fire from Palestinians who have had enough of the hunger and ever-present threat of airstrikes from Israeli forces. 'The biggest pressure on Hamas for whatever is being put on offer, even just a momentary pause that can allow some aid in, is enough to potentially make them now sign on, if that can offer Gazans some reprieve," said Tahani Mustafa, a senior analyst at the International Crisis Group. Israel has in recent months sidestepped aid operations led by the United Nations and instead backed a private aid-delivery system in which Israeli soldiers and armed American private contractors are protecting aid distribution hubs. The food has often run out quickly and there is often chaotic overcrowding at sites. Israeli military spokesman Effie Defrin said Thursday the military would soon complete the current phase of its operation in Gaza. Hamas is in a weakened position in Gaza after the elimination of much of its leadership, Defrin said. The group is now on its third leader in eight months. Write to Jared Malsin at
