Gaza ceasefire talks at an impasse as humanitarian crisis deepens
World
Gaza ceasefire talks at an impasse as humanitarian crisis deepens
CAIRO/RAFAH, Gaza Strip (Reuters) - Hamas stuck to its terms for a ceasefire deal and hostage exchange with Israel on Wednesday after the United States said truce talks in Cairo were "in the hands of" the Palestinian militant group.
Negotiators from Hamas, Qatar and Egypt - but not Israel - are in Cairo trying to secure a 40-day ceasefire in the war between Israel and the Islamist group in Gaza in time for the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, which begins early next week.
Urging Hamas to accept the terms on the table, President Joe Biden said on Tuesday that U.S. ally Israel was cooperating and "a rational offer" had been made for a ceasefire in exchange for the release of Israeli hostages.
"It’s in the hands of Hamas right now," Biden told reporters. "If we get to the circumstance that it [fighting] continues to Ramadan ... it’s gonna be very dangerous."
Hamas pledged to continue to take part in the Cairo talks, but Hamas officials said a ceasefire must be in place before hostages are released, Israel must withdraw from Gaza and all Gazans must be able to return to homes they were forced to flee.
A source earlier said Israel was staying away from the Cairo talks because Hamas refused to provide a list of hostages who are still alive. Hamas says this is impossible without a ceasefire as hostages are scattered across the war zone.
Israeli forces, which began their offensive in Gaza after the deadly Hamas raid on Israel on Oct. 7, have continued bombarding the Palestinian enclave since the talks began in Cairo on Sunday, and the dire humanitarian situation in the densely populated coastal strip has deteriorated further.
"Every day costs us dozens of martyrs [dead]. We want a ceasefire now," Shaban Abdel-Raouf, a Palestinian electrician and father of five from Gaza City, who is now in the southern city of Khan Younis, told Reuters via a chat app.
Residents of Khan Younis reported hearing explosions all night. Israeli warplanes struck areas of Al-Nuseirat refugee camp and Deir Al-Balah city in central Gaza, and part of the southern city of Rafah, witnesses said.
Health officials in Hamas-run Gaza said the number of people confirmed killed in Israel's offensive had now passed 30,700, with 86 deaths reported in the past 24 hours.
Palestinian health officials later said seven people had been killed when Israeli forces fired on groups in central Gaza. Israel did not immediately comment on the report and the circumstances were unclear.
