2023-12-20 13:26:31
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After more than two months of war and despite the continuation of bombings and operations by the Israeli army in the besieged Palestinian territory, negotiations have increased in recent days as have international pressures to obtain a second truce which would also allow improve the catastrophic humanitarian situation in Gaza.
⇒ The leader of Hamas in Egypt
⇒ New strikes in Gaza
“Very serious” discussions on a new truce
Discussions on a possible new truce between Israel and Hamas are “very serious,” said the White House. “We hope they will be successful.” However, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ruled out any ceasefire before the “elimination” of Hamas. “We are attacking Hamas with fire, hellish fire.”
The leader of Hamas in Egypt
The leader of Hamas, Ismaïl Haniyeh, arrived in Egypt on Wednesday for discussions on a truce in the war with Israel, the two camps seeming to multiply the signals in favor of a new humanitarian pause which would notably allow the release of hostages held in Gaza.
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At the head of a “high-level” delegation, he must have discussions with the head of Egyptian intelligence, Abbas Kamel, “on stopping the aggression and the war, to prepare an agreement for the liberation of prisoners, the end of the siege imposed on the Gaza Strip,” a source within Hamas told AFP on Tuesday.
The UN in an impasse
Widely criticized for its inaction since the start of the war, the UN Security Council, which has been negotiating a text for several days to accelerate the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza, could make a decision on Wednesday.
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The latest version of this resolution seen by AFP calls for an “urgent suspension of hostilities to allow safe and unhindered humanitarian access, and urgent measures towards a lasting cessation of hostilities”. Objective: find the right formula to avoid a veto by the United States, Israel’s main ally.
New strikes in Gaza
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Hamas sources reported on Wednesday Israeli strikes in Rafah, Khan Younis (south), Deir el-Balah (center), and in the northern sector of Gaza City, which left at least 11 dead, according to first estimates. An assessment that no independent source is able to verify. In Rafah, Umm Walid Al-Azayza let her anger explode to AFPTV after a bombing: “What crime did the children commit to deserve to be killed? The house fell on us, what is our crime? We We are not wanted.”
“Extreme hunger”
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According to a report from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs published Wednesday, half of the population – more than a million people – of this territory under Israeli blockade for more than fifteen years and subject to a total siege since October 9, suffering from extreme or severe hunger. Only 10% of needed food supplies have entered the Gaza Strip over the past 70 days, according to the report.
Death of an Israeli soldier
The Israeli army announced on Wednesday the death of a new soldier on Tuesday. Two others were injured, without their days being numbered, on the border with Lebanon. A total of 133 Israeli soldiers have been killed since the start of its ground offensive in Gaza on October 27.
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