Neither Israel nor Hamas have clearly committed to the ceasefire proposal put forward by the White House. However, the leading industrial nations are in favor of it. The news at a glance.
In the search for a way out of the Gaza war between Israel and the Islamist Hamas, the G7 group of leading democratic industrial nations has also backed the Middle East peace plan presented by US President Joe Biden. “We have jointly supported this plan by the American president and are also jointly happy that the (UN) Security Council has done the same,” said Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Italy. “Now it is important that everyone implements this. We are therefore calling on Hamas in particular to give the necessary approval.”
The three-phase plan presented by Biden initially envisages a complete and unrestricted ceasefire lasting six weeks. During this period, a certain group of hostages are to be released. In return, Palestinians imprisoned in Israel would be released. In the next phase, the fighting would then cease permanently and the remaining hostages would be released. In a final phase, according to the draft, the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip would begin.
“I have presented a draft that is supported by the UN Security Council, the G7 and the Israelis. The biggest obstacle so far is that Hamas refuses to sign, even though it has presented something similar,” said US President Biden at a joint press conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. He promised: “We will continue to apply pressure.”
Hamas spokesman: Nobody knows how many hostages are still alive
More than eight months after the attack on Israel, Hamas says it does not know how many of the approximately 120 hostages believed to be in the Gaza Strip are still alive. “I don’t know. Nobody knows,” Hamas spokesman Osama Hamdan claimed in an interview with the US television channel CNN.
Only on Saturday, Israeli soldiers freed four hostages from Hamas in the Gaza Strip during a large-scale military operation. In Israel, numerous people have been taking to the streets for months, demanding that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government make greater efforts to bring all the hostages home. The fate of the kidnapped people also plays an important role in the indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas about a ceasefire.
Israeli military operation near Jenin
At least two people have died in an Israeli military operation in the West Bank. The armed forces reportedly attacked a building in a village near the city of Jenin where “two high-ranking, wanted suspects” were located. “The two wanted suspects were eliminated and weapons were found in their possession,” the army said. It remains unclear why the two dead were being sought. Jenin is considered a stronghold of militant Palestinians. The Israeli army carries out repeated raids there.
Minister wants to provide funds for Palestinian terror victims
Israel’s right-wing extremist finance minister Bezalel Smotrich wants to withhold funds amounting to 32.5 million dollars (around 30.3 million euros) from the Palestinian Authority and instead pay them out to Israeli terror victims. The minister wrote on the X platform that he had signed an order to this effect. He spoke of “historical justice”.
The US government criticized the minister’s move as an “extraordinarily misguided decision” that could destabilize the situation in the West Bank. “We have made it clear to the Israeli government that these funds belong to the Palestinian people,” said US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller.
Reports: Court extends forced break for Al-Jazeera
Meanwhile, according to media reports, an Israeli court has approved an extension of the state-imposed broadcasting ban on the Arabic TV channel Al-Jazeera for another 45 days. The responsible district court in Tel Aviv considered it proven that there is a close connection between the Qatari broadcaster and Hamas, as several Israeli media reported.
About a week ago, the judges had already confirmed the government’s closure of the station for 35 days. They considered it proven that the medium posed a threat to state security due to its proximity to Hamas. The Hamas political bureau is also located in the Gulf emirate of Qatar.
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
