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Israeli soldiers drive a tank at a staging area near the border with the Gaza Strip in southern Israel on Sunday.
Chafrir Abayov/AP
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Chafrir Abayov/AP
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Israeli soldiers drive a tank at a staging area near the border with the Gaza Strip in southern Israel on Sunday.
Chafrir Abayov/AP
JERUSALEM — The latest Gaza ceasefire talks ended in Cairo after “in-depth and serious discussions,” the Hamas militant group said on Sunday, reiterating key demands Israel has again rejected. After early signs of progress, the outlook appeared to darken as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to resist international pressure to stop the war.
Israel has closed a key crossing point for delivering much-needed humanitarian aid to Gaza after Hamas attacked the territory. Defense Minister Yoav Gallant insisted Hamas was not serious about negotiations and warned that “there will be heavy operations in Rafah and other areas across the Gaza Strip in the near future.”
Israel did not send a delegation to the talks mediated by Egypt and Qatar. Egyptian state media reported that a Hamas delegation had traveled to Qatar, where its political offices are located, for discussions and would return to Cairo on Tuesday for further negotiations.
Another threat was posed to the talks when Israel ordered the local offices of Qatar's Al Jazeera satellite news network closed, accusing it of broadcasting anti-Israel incitement. The ban does not appear to have affected the channel's operations in Gaza or the West Bank.
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Netanyahu, under pressure from hardliners in his government, has repeatedly lowered expectations for a ceasefire agreement and called Hamas' key demands, including a withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza and an end to the war, “extreme.” This would be tantamount to surrendering after the October 7 Hamas attack that sparked the fighting, he said.
Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh earlier said in a statement that the militant group was serious and positive about the negotiations and that stopping Israeli attacks in the Gaza Strip was its top priority.
But the Israeli government again pledged to continue military operations in Rafah, Gaza's southernmost city on the border with Egypt, where more than half of Gaza's 2.3 million residents are currently seeking refuge from Israel's attack. Rapha is a key entry point for aid.
The main crossing point for aid deliveries to Gaza is now closed
The now closed Kerem Shalom is another. The Israeli military reported that 10 projectiles were fired at an intersection in southern Israel and later said fighter jets struck the source. Hamas said it had targeted Israeli soldiers in the area. Israel's Channel 12 television channel said 10 people were injured, three in serious condition. It was unclear how long the crosswalk would remain closed.
Philippe Lazarini, head of the U.N.'s Palestinian refugee agency, called for an independent investigation and “accountability for the blatant disregard for humanitarian workers.” He also said Israel had denied him entry into Gaza for the second time this week.
The closure of Kerem Shalom comes shortly after the head of the UN World Food Program (WFP) claimed a “full-scale famine” was on the horizon in the devastated northern Gaza Strip, the most prominent warning yet of aid restrictions to the region. It is one of the The comment was not an official declaration of famine.
In a full transcript of the NBC interview, WFP Director Cindy McCain said famine was “moving south” in Gaza and that Israel's efforts to allow more aid were not going far enough. “We are now raising mass outside the border, enough to have enough trucks and food for 1.1 million people for about three months. We need to bring that in,” she said.
The pursuit of a ceasefire is under pressure due to the enormous humanitarian needs in Gaza. The proposal submitted to Hamas by Egyptian mediators sets out a three-step process that would result in an immediate six-week ceasefire and the partial release of Israeli hostages kidnapped on October 7, and include some form of Israeli withdrawal. The initial phase lasts 40 days. Hamas begins by releasing female civilian hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.
Netanyahu said Israel had shown a willingness to make concessions but “will continue to fight until all goals are achieved.” This includes the stated goal of crushing Hamas. Israel has said it must target Rafah to attack its remaining fighters, despite warnings from the United States and other countries about the risks to civilians.
On Sunday, Israel carried out an airstrike on the home of the al-Attar family in the city's refugee camp near Rafah, killing four children, including a baby, and two adults, according to Abu Youssef al-Najjar hospital.
At least five people were killed in another Israeli attack on the Nuseirat refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip, according to the Aqsa Martyrs Hospital, which received the bodies. The Israeli military said it had attacked a Hamas command center in the center of the Gaza Strip. There was no mention of casualties.
In a fiery speech on Israel's annual Holocaust Remembrance Day, Netanyahu added: “I say to world leaders: No pressure, no decision from any international forum will stop Israel from defending itself.”
On October 7, a cross-border attack by Hamas left about 1,200 people dead and 250 taken hostage. Israel says the militants are still holding about 100 hostages and more than 30 bodies. Netanyahu is under increasing pressure from some hostage families to end the war and negotiate a rescue for the hostages.
Israeli air and ground attacks have killed more than 34,500 people, according to Palestinian health authorities, which do not distinguish between civilians and combatants but say the majority of the dead are women and children.
Israel blames Hamas for civilian deaths and accuses it of ambushing residential and public spaces. The Israeli military said it had killed 13,000 militants, without providing any evidence to support the claim.