5 h. ago Israel orders evacuations in central Gaza as ceasefire talks stall and military offensive widens

The Israeli military has issued new evacuation warnings for central Gaza, an area where ground operations have been rare

Events

9 h. ago From Gaza to Ukraine, peace always seems just out of reach – and the reason isn’t only political | Simon Tisdall

Murdering and massacring innocents is indefensible. So why on earth is it allowed to continue? The answer is moral relativismThe quest for peace in major conflicts has rarely been so desperate and so seemingly futile. In Gaza, talk of ceasefires, truces and pauses typically ends in tears. In Ukraine, the war is now well into its fourth year with no end in sight, despite Donald Trump’s new 50-day deadline. Syria burns anew. Sudan’s horrors never cease. Last year, state-based conflicts reached a peak – 61 across 36 countries. It was the highest recorded total since 1946. This year could be worse.The sheer scale and depravity of war crimes and other conflict-zone atrocities is extraordinary. The deliberate, illegal targeting and terrorising of civilians, the killing, maiming and abduction of children, and the use of starvation, sexual violence, torture and forced displacement as weapons of war have grown almost routine. Israel’s killing last week of children queueing for water in Gaza ...

Politics

7 d. ago Israeli strikes in Gaza kill at least 19, hospitals say, as ceasefire talks drag on

Gaza health officials say Israeli airstrikes have killed at least 19 people including six children at a water collection point

Events

8 d. ago Gaza truce talks stall as 28 Palestinians killed in Israeli airstrikes overnight

Sources say the talks are faltering over the extent of Israeli forces' withdrawal from the Palestinian enclave

Events

1 week ago Hamas agrees to the release of 10 hostages amid Gaza ceasefire talks

The Palestinian terrorist group said the ceasefire talks have several sticking points, including the flow of aid, withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip, and 'genuine guarantees' for a permanent ceasefire.'

Events

1 week ago Israel intensifies Gaza bloodshed as soldiers blown up amid ceasefire talks

Five Israeli soldiers were killed in roadside bomb as war on Gaza intensifies - even as White House talks between Israel and the US took place and hopes for a ceasefire within days were raised

Events

1 week ago Indirect talks over Gaza ceasefire continue as Netanyahu arrives in Washington

Israeli minister says meeting with Trump will focus on ‘a new Middle East’ with 60-day pause discussed in DohaMiddle East crisis – live updatesIndirect talks between Israel and Hamas over a ceasefire and hostage deal in Gaza continued for a second day on Monday, hours before a meeting in Washington between Benjamin Netanyahu and Donald Trump.Avi Dichter, an Israeli minister and member of Netanyahu’s security cabinet, said he expected Trump’s meeting with the Israeli prime minister would go beyond Gaza to include the possibility of normalising ties with Lebanon, Syria and Saudi Arabia – an ambitious project that is central to the US president’s policy in the Middle East. Continue reading...

Events

1 week ago A glimmer of hope in Gaza? Inside the fragile ceasefire push as Trump hosts Netanyahu

After months of deadlock, talks resume this week over Trump’s 60-day ceasefire proposal – with Netanyahu in Washington, Bel Trew examines whether this time is any different

Politics

1 week ago Israeli strikes kill at least 38 in Gaza as ceasefire talks reach critical point

Benjamin Netanyahu travels to Washington as momentum gathers in negotiations for a US-sponsored deal Israeli warplanes launched a wave of strikes in Gaza on Sunday, killing at least 38 Palestinians, according to hospital officials, as talks over a ceasefire in the devastated territory reached a critical point.Officials at Nasser hospital in the southern city of Khan Younis said 18 people were killed by strikes in al-Mawasi, a nearby coastal area that is crowded with tented encampments of those displaced by fighting elsewhere. Continue reading...

Events

1 week ago ‘Our days are full of hardship’: people in Gaza barely dare to hope for success in ceasefire talks

Mood is tense and subdued after nearly 21 months of Israeli offensives that have displaced almost the entire populationIn Gaza City on Sunday morning, there was only one topic of conversation: the possibility of peace. In the half-ruined town, as across the entire territory, few took their eyes off their phones, a television or better-informed relatives or friends for more than a few minutes.Um Fadi Ma’rouf, from the now destroyed town of Beit Lahia in the far north of Gaza, said she was encouraged by the positive response from Hamas to the most recent US-sponsored proposal of terms for a deal. Continue reading...

Events

2 w. ago Hamas says it is ready for ceasefire talks with Israel 'immediately'

Security officials in Tel-Aviv reportedly met tonight to discuss their next steps before Benjamin Netanyahu heads to Washington for talks on Monday with US President Donald Trump.

Politics

2 w. ago Israel continues airstrikes on Gaza after Hamas says it is ready for ceasefire talks

Hopes that pause to the killing may be agreed were boosted despite 24 Palestinians being killed including 10 seeking aidIsrael has continued to launch waves of airstrikes in Gaza, hours after Hamas said it was ready to start talks “immediately” on a US-sponsored proposal for a 60-day ceasefire.The announcement by the militant Islamist organisation increased hopes that a deal may be done within days to pause the killing in Gaza and possibly end the near 21-month conflict. Continue reading...

Events

2 w. ago Hamas says it is ready to enter ceasefire negotiations in ‘positive spirit’

Group said to want stronger guarantees of permanent end to war as Netanyahu prepares to meet Trump in USHamas said it had responded on Friday in “a positive spirit” to a US-brokered Gaza ceasefire proposal and was prepared to enter into talks on implementing the deal which envisages a release of hostages and negotiations on ending the conflict.US President Donald Trump earlier announced a “final proposal” for a 60-day ceasefire in the nearly 21-month-old war between Israel and Hamas, stating he anticipated a reply from the parties in coming hours. Continue reading...

Events

2 w. ago Hamas close to accepting proposed Gaza ceasefire deal, say sources

Group said to want stronger guarantees of permanent end to war as Netanyahu prepares to meet Trump in USHamas leaders are close to accepting a proposed deal for a ceasefire in Gaza but want stronger guarantees that any pause in hostilities would lead to a permanent end to the 20-month war, sources close to the group have said.Hamas officials on Friday issued a statement confirming they were talking to other “Palestinian factions” before formally announcing a response to discuss new ceasefire proposals already accepted by Israel. Continue reading...

Economics

2 w. ago Hamas officials meet to discuss proposed Gaza ceasefire deal

Militant group said to want stronger guarantees of permanent end to war as Netanyahu prepares to meet Trump in USMiddle East crisis – live updatesHamas leaders are close to accepting a proposed deal for a ceasefire in Gaza but want stronger guarantees that any pause in hostilities would lead to a permanent end to the 20-month war, sources close to the group have said.Hamas officials met on Thursday in Istanbul to discuss the ceasefire proposals and later issued a statement confirming they were talking to other “Palestinian factions” before formally announcing a response. Continue reading...

Politics

2 w. ago Gaza ceasefire talks: Hamas officials meet to discuss proposed deal

Militant group said to want stronger guarantees of a permanent end to the war as Israeli prime minister prepares to fly to WashingtonHamas leaders are close to accepting a proposed deal for a ceasefire in Gaza but want stronger guarantees that any pause in hostilities would lead to a permanent end to the 20-month war, sources close to the militant Islamist organisation have said.Hamas officials met on Thursday in Istanbul to discuss the ceasefire proposals and later issued a statement confirming they were talking to other “Palestinian factions” before formally announcing a response. Continue reading...

Politics

2 w. ago Gaza death toll hits at least 300 in just two days after horror Israel overnight attacks

Hundreds were killed in Gaza overnight even as ceasefire proposals are underway, and Hamas demands talks about ending the war as part of any agreement for a two month, phased pause in fighting

Events

2 w. ago Israel steps up deadly bombardment of Gaza before ceasefire talks

Officials say about 90 people killed since Wednesday night as Israeli security cabinet prepares for meetingIsrael has escalated its offensive in Gaza before imminent talks about a ceasefire, with warships and artillery launching one of the deadliest and most intense bombardments in the devastated Palestinian territory for many months.Medics and officials in Gaza reported that about 90 people were killed overnight and on Thursday, including many women and children. On Tuesday night and Wednesday the toll was higher, they said. Casualties included Marwan al-Sultan, a cardiologist and director of the Indonesian hospital in northern Gaza, who died in an airstrike that also killed his wife and five children. Continue reading...

Events

2 w. ago Trump claims Israel ready for Gaza peace deal in bid to boost Hamas ceasefire talks

US president says Qatar and Egypt will deliver ‘final proposal’ to Hamas, whom he urged to accept deal ‘because it will not get better’Israel-Gaza war: latest updatesDonald Trump has claimed that Israel is ready to agree to a peace deal with Hamas as he seeks to broker a ceasefire to the war in Gaza that has claimed almost 60,000 lives.In a post on Truth Social, the US president wrote: “Israel has agreed to the necessary conditions to finalize the 60 Day CEASEFIRE, during which time we will work with all parties to end the War.” Continue reading...

Politics