Gaza War LIVE updates: A ceasefire deal in the intensifying war between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip hangs on a loose thread, with a fresh round of negotiations taking place in Egypt’s capital city of Cairo on Tuesday (May 7). Monday’s ceasefire talks in Qatar’s capital Doha failed to produce an agreement.CONTINUE FULL READING>>>>
In a statement, Qatar’s foreign ministry said that it would send a delegation to Cairo to resume negotiations, with the hope that “talks will culminate in reaching an agreement for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. The statement comes hours after Hamas said it informed mediators Egypt and Qatar of its “approval of their proposal regarding a ceasefire” in the war, which has been going on for seven months.
The Israeli government, meanwhile, said that the proposal was far from Israel’s essential demands”, but the government would send negotiators for talks “to exhaust the potential for arriving at an agreement.”
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Ahead of the ceasefire negotiations, Israel carried out strikes in Gaza’s Rafah. A report by the news agency AFP said that there was heavy Israeli bombardment throughout Monday night, and a hospital said on Tuesday that 11 people had been killed and dozens injured.
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On Tuesday, the Israeli military said that it had captured the Gazan side of the Rafah crossing. Addressing a press conference, an Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesperson said, “We have operational control of the area and the crossing.”
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The above development comes after Palestinian and Egyptian officials said that Israeli tanks had entered Rafah.
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On Monday, the Israeli government ordered Palestinians to leave parts of eastern Rafah, adding it was carrying out limited operations.
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Renewing the call for people to leave Rafah late Monday, Israeli military spokesman Daniel Hagari said “aircraft targeted more than 50 terror targets in the Rafah area” throughout the day.
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Also on Monday, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned that the Israeli offensive in Rafahwould be “intolerable.”
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“This is an opportunity that cannot be missed, and a ground invasion in Rafah would be intolerable because of its devastating humanitarian consequences, and because of its destabilizing impact in the region,” Guterres said.
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The Met Gala in New York was met by pro-Palestinian demonstrations on Tuesday.
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Among the rallying points were the gates of Columbia University, which has been the centre of spreading demonstrations, before protesters marched through Manhattan to American fashion’s biggest night, AFP reported.
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Several arrests were made at the demonstrations at the Met Gala, though the number remains unconfirmed.CONTINUE FULL READING>>>>
(With inputs from agencies)
