Israel Hamas War Ceasefire

Mediators seeking a Gaza ceasefire are set to propose a truce of under a month to Palestinian operator Hamas, a source with knowledge of the talks told AFP on Wednesday.

Hamas has expressed its openness to any agreements or ideas for establishing a permanent ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.

Israel's Mossad chief is set to visit Qatar to discuss the release of hostages in Gaza, even as Egypt proposed a two-day truce in the Palestinian enclave, as regional tensions simmered.

Egypt has proposed an initial two-day ceasefire in Gaza to exchange four Israeli hostages of Hamas for some Palestinian prisoners, Egypt's president said on Sunday as Israeli military strikes killed 45 Palestinians across the enclave.

Israel said Thursday its spy chief will attend Gaza ceasefire talks and Hamas vowed to stop fighting if a truce is reached, as long-stalled efforts to end the war appeared to gain momentum.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken left for the Middle East Monday on a new push for an elusive Gaza ceasefire two weeks before US elections, seeing a new opportunity from Israel's killing of Hamas's leader.

US President Joe Biden on Thursday hailed Israel's killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar as a "good day" for the world, saying it also removed a key obstacle to a Gaza ceasefire and hostage deal.

Irish Prime Minister Simon Harris on Saturday urged Israel to heed "the concerns of the international community" and not repeat recent firing on UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon.

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has branded Israel's PM Benjamin Netanyahu the "butcher of Gaza" and compared him to Nazi Germany's Adolf Hitler.

For Hamas, the hostages are key bargaining chips in negotiations with Israel aiming to secure a truce and the release of Palestinian prisoners.

Thousands marched in US cities from Washington to Los Angeles on Saturday, demanding an immediate ceasefire as the war in Gaza nears the one-year mark, with a man attempting to self-immolate in protest.

The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said on Sunday an Israeli strike on a mosque-turned-shelter in central Deir al-Balah killed 26 people, while Israel's military said it had targeted Hamas militants.

Thousands marched in US cities from Washington to Los Angeles on Saturday, demanding an immediate ceasefire as the war in Gaza nears the one-year mark, with a man attempting to self-immolate in protest.

"I think that today, the priority is that we return to a political solution, that we stop delivering weapons to fight in Gaza," Emmanuel Macron told French broadcaster France Inter.

Thousands of protesters marched in cities around the world on Saturday calling for a ceasefire in Gaza and Lebanon as the war in the Palestinian territory neared the one-year mark.

Mediators seeking a Gaza ceasefire are set to propose a truce of under a month to Palestinian operator Hamas, a source with knowledge of the talks told AFP on Wednesday.

Hamas has expressed its openness to any agreements or ideas for establishing a permanent ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.

Israel's Mossad chief is set to visit Qatar to discuss the release of hostages in Gaza, even as Egypt proposed a two-day truce in the Palestinian enclave, as regional tensions simmered.

Egypt has proposed an initial two-day ceasefire in Gaza to exchange four Israeli hostages of Hamas for some Palestinian prisoners, Egypt's president said on Sunday as Israeli military strikes killed 45 Palestinians across the enclave.

Israel said Thursday its spy chief will attend Gaza ceasefire talks and Hamas vowed to stop fighting if a truce is reached, as long-stalled efforts to end the war appeared to gain momentum.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken left for the Middle East Monday on a new push for an elusive Gaza ceasefire two weeks before US elections, seeing a new opportunity from Israel's killing of Hamas's leader.

US President Joe Biden on Thursday hailed Israel's killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar as a "good day" for the world, saying it also removed a key obstacle to a Gaza ceasefire and hostage deal.

Irish Prime Minister Simon Harris on Saturday urged Israel to heed "the concerns of the international community" and not repeat recent firing on UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon.

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has branded Israel's PM Benjamin Netanyahu the "butcher of Gaza" and compared him to Nazi Germany's Adolf Hitler.

For Hamas, the hostages are key bargaining chips in negotiations with Israel aiming to secure a truce and the release of Palestinian prisoners.

Thousands marched in US cities from Washington to Los Angeles on Saturday, demanding an immediate ceasefire as the war in Gaza nears the one-year mark, with a man attempting to self-immolate in protest.

The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said on Sunday an Israeli strike on a mosque-turned-shelter in central Deir al-Balah killed 26 people, while Israel's military said it had targeted Hamas militants.

Thousands marched in US cities from Washington to Los Angeles on Saturday, demanding an immediate ceasefire as the war in Gaza nears the one-year mark, with a man attempting to self-immolate in protest.

"I think that today, the priority is that we return to a political solution, that we stop delivering weapons to fight in Gaza," Emmanuel Macron told French broadcaster France Inter.

Thousands of protesters marched in cities around the world on Saturday calling for a ceasefire in Gaza and Lebanon as the war in the Palestinian territory neared the one-year mark.