Sunday, March 3, 2024

0830 GMT — Egypt was set to host the latest talks aiming for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas as Gaza officials reported more deadly bombardment in the nearly five-month-old war.

A senior Hamas official told AFP that a delegation from the Palestinian group would discuss with mediators a proposal for a six-week truce after a US official said Israel had “more or less accepted” its terms.

Envoys from the United States, Qatar and Hamas have arrived in Cairo, state-linked media reported, as all sides have been scrambling to lock in a truce before Ramadan, the Muslim fasting month that begins on March 10 or 11.

The Hamas official said that if Israel were to meet its demands — which include a military withdrawal from Gaza and stepped-up humanitarian aid — this would “pave the way for an agreement within the next 24-48 hours”.

The health ministry in Gaza said at least 90 Palestinians had been killed in the past 24 hours, including 14 family members whose house in the southern Rafah refugee camp had been hit.

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1025 GMT — 15 children die from dehydration, malnutrition

At least 15 children died from dehydration and malnutrition at Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza, the Health Ministry in the besieged enclave said.

“15 children died as a result of malnutrition and dehydration in Kamal Adwan Hospital,” ministry spokesman Ashraf Al-Qudra said in a statement.

“We fear for the lives of six children suffering from malnutrition and dehydration in intensive care at Kamal Adwan Hospital, as a result of the cessation of the electric generator and oxygen machines,” Qudra added.

On Feb. 19, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) warned that the sharp rise in malnutrition among children, pregnant women, and lactating mothers in the Gaza Strip poses a “serious threat” to their health, particularly given the Israeli forces’ ongoing attacks on the enclave.

0740 GMT — 6 children among 14 killed in Israeli bombing of Rafah

At least 14 Palestinians, including six children, were killed on Sunday in an Israeli bombing that targeted a house in Rafah in southern Gaza.

“In a devastating airstrike carried out by Israeli warplanes last night, a three-story house in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip was targeted, resulting in the killing of dozens of civilians, including six children. Many are still trapped under the rubble,” the official Palestinian news agency Wafa reported.

The agency added that 14 Palestinians were killed in the airstrike which targeted “the Abu Anza family house in the Al-Salam neighborhood east of Rafah, with dozens more wounded and many still missing.”

“The attack also caused extensive damage to the surrounding area,” it added.

0750 GMT — Israeli military steps up strikes on Hamas in Gaza’s Khan Younis

The Israeli military said it intensified operations in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis, destroying dozens of Hamas targets in a blitz of air and artillery strikes.

The air force and artillery hit about 50 targets within six minutes, it said, in a bid to “intensify operational achievements in the area.”

“During the strikes, the troops destroyed terrorist infrastructure and eliminated Hamas terrorists who were operating from civilian facilities in urban areas,” it said.

Residents in the area said they were surprised by the swift advancement of Israeli tanks, which sparked fresh battles with Palestinian gunmen. In one housing project some families took to social media, saying they were unable to leave their homes with the tanks in the streets.

0756 GMT — Hamas says Gaza truce possible ‘within 24 to 48 hours’ if Israel accepts terms

A senior Hamas official told AFP that a ceasefire in Gaza may be secured “within 24 to 48 hours” if Israel accepts the Palestinian group’s demands in ongoing talks.

“If Israel agrees to Hamas demands, which include the return of displaced Palestinians to northern Gaza and increasing humanitarian aid, that would pave the way for a (truce) agreement within the next 24 to 48 hours,” said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive issue, as negotiations were set to resume in Cairo.

0109 GMT — Gaza truce talks expected in Cairo as Israeli assault rages on

Mediators are expected to reconvene in Cairo and search for a formula acceptable to Israel and Palestinian resistance groups for a lasting ceasefire in Gaza, sources with knowledge of the talks said after foreign governments resorted to airdrops to aid desperate civilians in the Palestinian enclave.

Israeli and Hamas delegations were expected to arrive in Cairo, two Egyptian security sources said, although another source briefed on the talks said Israel would not send a delegation until it got a full list of hostages who are still alive.

A senior US official said that the framework for a six-week pause in fighting was in place, with Israel’s agreement, and now depended on Hamas agreeing to release hostages it has held in Gaza since its attacks on southern Israel on October 7.

“The path to a ceasefire right now literally at this hour is straightforward. And there’s a deal on the table. There’s a framework deal. The Israelis have more or less accepted it,” the official told reporters. “The onus right now is on Hamas.”

Biden has said he hopes a ceasefire will be in place by the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, which starts on March 10.

0058 GMT — US military aircraft airdrop thousands of meals into Gaza in an emergency humanitarian aid operation

US military C-130 cargo planes dropped food in pallets over Gaza in the opening stage of an emergency humanitarian assistance authorised by President Joe Biden after more than 100 Palestinians who had surged to pull goods off an aid convoy were killed during a chaotic encounter with Israeli troops.

Three planes from Air Forces Central dropped 66 bundles containing about 38,000 meals into Gaza at 8:30 am EST (3:30 pm local). The bundles were dropped in southwest Gaza, on the beach along the territory’s Mediterranean coast.

The airdrop was coordinated with the Royal Jordanian Air Force, which said it had two food airdrops in northern Gaza and has conducted several rounds in recent months.

2200 GMT — Three Israeli soldiers killed in a building in the Gaza city of Khan Younis

Three Israeli soldiers have been killed and 14 injured when explosive devices were detonated inside a building in the Gaza city of Khan Younis, the army said.

“Three soldiers were killed and 14 others were injured, including 5 in serious condition from the 450th Battalion of the army, due to the explosion of explosive devices in a building in the city of Khan Younis in southern Gaza,” the army said in a statement.

Army spokesman Daniel Haggai said “the army will investigate the explosions,” and that “the fighting in Khan Younis is difficult.”

The number of fatalities in the ranks of the Israeli army since October 7 has risen to 585, and 245 since the start of the ground invasion on October 27.