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☆ Live Updates: Israeli Tanks Enter Rafah and Take Control of Border Crossing
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-07 | by ( Isabel Kershner | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +4 min

The officials said that the changes were made by Arab mediators in consultation with William J. Burns, the C.I.A. Qatari and Egyptian mediators spoke with him on Monday about the changes that Hamas was ready to accept, the two officials said. Hamas said that Arab mediators had put forward the changes, but one official said that Hamas had suggested them. Mr. Netanyahu said last week that he would carry out an offensive in Rafah “with or without” an agreement. More than one million Palestinians have sought shelter in Rafah as they fled other parts of Gaza under attack by Israel.

Persons: William J, Burns, Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, Netanyahu, Adam Rasgon Organizations: Hamas, U.S, Qatar’s, Ministry, Qatari Locations: Israel, United States, Gaza, Cairo, Rafah, Jerusalem

Israeli warplanes pounded targets in the southern Gaza city of Rafah on Monday as the military told about 110,000 people sheltering there to evacuate. Many people began to leave, fearing that Israel was moving ahead with its long-planned invasion of Rafah, despite stiff international pressure. A military spokesman would not say when troops might enter the crowded city, but described the evacuation as part of Israel’s plans to dismantle Hamas and to free hostages taken on Oct. 7. Hours after the evacuation order, the political leader of Hamas, Ismail Haniyeh, issued a statement that the group had accepted a new cease-fire proposal from Qatar and Egypt, which have acted as intermediaries in peace talks. The group and Israeli officials said it was not referring to the proposal that Israel recently agreed to, leaving the conflict unresolved.

Persons: Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu’s, “, Ismail Haniyeh Organizations: Hamas Locations: Gaza, Rafah, Qatar, Egypt, Israel

☆ Cease-Fire Talks Between Israel and Hamas Again at an Impasse
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-05 | by ( Adam Rasgon | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The latest round of negotiations between Israel and Hamas hit an impasse on Sunday as mediators struggled to bridge remaining gaps and a Hamas delegation departed the talks in Cairo, according to two senior Hamas officials and two other officials familiar with the talks. An Israeli official also confirmed the negotiations had stalled and described them as being in “crisis.”For months, the negotiations aimed at achieving a cease-fire and a release of hostages have made little progress, but signs the two sides were coming closer to an agreement appeared over the last week. Israel backed off some of its long-held demands and a top Hamas official said the group was studying the latest Israeli offer with a “positive spirit.”But the setback over the weekend meant Palestinians living in miserable conditions in Gaza would not experience an imminent reprieve and the families of hostages held by militants would have to wait longer for the freedom of their loved ones. The main obstacle in the talks was the duration of a cease-fire, with Hamas demanding it be permanent and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel expressing openness to only a temporary halt in the fighting.

Persons: Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu Organizations: Hamas Locations: Israel, Cairo, Gaza

On a visit to Israel on Wednesday, Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken put the onus squarely on Hamas to accept the proposal. But Israeli officials have said, consistently and emphatically, that the offensive will take place. The number of Palestinians Israel is offering to free in exchange is unclear. More than 100 were released in a weeklong cease-fire in November, and Israeli officials say they believe that more than 30 — possibly many more — are dead. Gazan health officials say that Israel’s subsequent bombing and invasion have killed more than 34,000 people, and injured far more.

Persons: Osama Hamdan, Al Manar, —, Antony J, Blinken, wouldn’t, ”, Yair Lapid, Benjamin Netanyahu, Mr, Hamdan, Biden, Netanyahu’s, ” Mr, Netanyahu, Israel Organizations: Israel, Hezbollah, Hamas, United Nations Locations: Jerusalem, Washington, Gaza, Lebanese, Israel, United States, Qatar, Egypt, Rafah, masse

A Hamas leader said Thursday that the group would soon send a delegation to Cairo to “complete ongoing discussions” on a cease-fire deal for the war in the Gaza Strip, raising hopes of progress in the stalled efforts for a truce. The latest cease-fire proposal, which has been forcefully pushed by the Biden administration in recent days, comes after nearly seven devastating months of war. The deal would include a weekslong temporary truce — the exact duration is unclear — and the release of hostages held by Hamas and Palestinian prisoners in Israel. It would also allow the return of civilians to the largely depopulated northern part of Gaza, and enable increased delivery of aid to the territory. Ismail Haniyeh, the leader of Hamas’s political wing, said the group was studying the latest proposal from Israel, which includes some Israeli concessions, with a “positive spirit.” A Hamas delegation will go to Egypt soon to seek a deal that “realizes our people’s demands and ends the aggression,” according to a statement by the group.

Persons: Biden, Ismail Haniyeh, ”, “ Locations: Cairo, “, Gaza, Israel, Egypt

Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken delivered twin messages to Hamas and Israel on Wednesday, pressing Hamas to accept a cease-fire proposal while at the same time urging Israeli leaders to put off a major ground invasion into the thickly populated southern Gaza city of Rafah. On the last day of a Middle East trip, his seventh visit to the region since the war began in October, Mr. Blinken tried to turn up the pressure on Hamas. “We are determined to get a cease-fire that brings the hostages home and to get it now, and the only reason that that wouldn’t be achieved is because of Hamas,” Mr. Blinken said at the start of a meeting in Tel Aviv with Isaac Herzog, the president of Israel. “There is a proposal on the table, and as we’ve said: No delays, no excuses. The time is now.”The proposed agreement calls for the release of 33 hostages in the initial stage of a cease-fire, and would lead to the release of Palestinian prisoners being held in Israel.

Persons: Antony J, Blinken, “, wouldn’t, ” Mr, Isaac Herzog, Israel, we’ve Organizations: Israel, Mr Locations: Gaza, Rafah, Tel Aviv, Israel

☆ Netanyahu Again Vows to Invade Rafah ‘With or Without’ Cease-Fire Deal
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-30 | by ( Erika Solomon | Christopher F. Schuetze | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

A camp in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip near the border with Egypt on Sunday. One official also suggested that Israel was using the threat of an imminent military maneuver to press the armed group into a hostage deal. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak of Britain spoke to Mr. Netanyahu on Tuesday, his office said in a statement. A senior Hamas official said on social media on Monday that the group was studying a new Israeli proposal. A Hamas delegation met with officials in Egypt’s intelligence service on Monday, according to a senior Hamas official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to talk about sensitive discussions between Hamas and Egypt.

Persons: Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel, Antony J, Blinken, Netanyahu, ”, “, Netanyahu’s, Rishi Sunak, Adam Rasgon Organizations: Hamas, State Department, Mr Locations: Rafah, Gaza, Egypt, Gazan, United States, Qatar, Israel, Jordan

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel vowed anew on Tuesday to launch an invasion into the southern Gaza Strip, even as a renewed push for a cease-fire agreement was showing glimmers of a potential breakthrough. After seven months of an Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, the United States, Qatar and several other countries have been hoping to broker a cease-fire, and Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken is visiting the Middle East to press for an agreement. But with Hamas arguing that any agreement should include an end to the war, and with right-wing politicians in Israel threatening to leave the government coalition if the long-planned incursion into the southern Gazan city of Rafah is delayed, Mr. Netanyahu said that Israel reserved the right to keep fighting.

Persons: Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel, Antony J, Blinken, Netanyahu Locations: Gaza, Israel, United States, Qatar, Gazan, Rafah

Israeli negotiators, offering a hint of hope for negotiations over a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip, have reduced the number of hostages they want Hamas to release during the first phase of a truce, three Israeli officials said on Monday. For weeks, cease-fire talks have been at a standstill. Hamas did not respond to a request for comment about whether it would send representatives to Cairo. A senior Hamas official said on social media on Monday that the group was studying a new Israeli proposal. The American secretary of state, Antony J. Blinken, who was meeting in Saudi Arabia on Monday with Arab diplomats, said the onus was now on Hamas.

Persons: Antony J, Blinken Organizations: Hamas Locations: Gaza, Israel, Cairo, Saudi Arabia

Under intense international scrutiny, Israel has expedited the flow of aid into Gaza this month, but humanitarian groups say that more is needed as severe hunger grips the enclave, particularly in the devastated north. Israel’s efforts — which include opening new aid routes — have been acknowledged in the last week by the Biden administration and international aid officials. More aid trucks appear to be reaching Gaza, especially the north, where experts have warned for weeks that famine is imminent. The increased levels of aid are a good sign, but it is too early to say that looming famine is no longer a risk, said Arif Husain, the chief economist at the United Nations World Food Program. “If we can do this, then we can ease the pain, we can avert famine.”

Persons: Biden, Arif Husain, ” Mr, Husain, ” Organizations: United Nations, Food Locations: Israel, Gaza

☆ Hamas Says It Is Reviewing Israeli Proposal on Cease-Fire Deal.
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-27 | by ( Adam Rasgon | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Hamas said on Saturday that it was reviewing a new Israeli proposal for a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip, a move that comes amid efforts to break a deadlock in the talks between the armed group and Israel. In a statement, Khalil al-Hayya, a senior Hamas official, said the group had received an Israeli response to a proposal it delivered to Egyptian and Qatari mediators two weeks ago. Mr. al-Hayya did not provide any details included in the Israeli proposal, but he said Hamas would respond to it after the group finished studying it. Hamas has demanded a permanent cease-fire, whereas Israel has expressed openness to a temporary pause. Hamas officials have said Palestinians should be able to go back en masse, while Israeli officials have said Israel wants to put limits on who can return, where and how.

Persons: Khalil al, Hayya, Israel Organizations: Hamas Locations: Gaza, Israel, Rafah

☆ Israel Plans to Expand ‘Humanitarian Zone’ if It Invades Rafah
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-23 | by ( Adam Rasgon | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

If Israel were to begin an invasion in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, where a million displaced Palestinians are sheltering, an Israeli-designated “humanitarian zone” along the coast would be expanded to take in more civilians, an Israeli military official said Monday evening. The comments were among the first indications of the Israeli military’s plans for civilians if it were to launch a major ground offensive in Rafah. The Biden administration has urged Israel to forgo such an operation because of the risks it would pose to displaced Palestinians. Palestinians who have sought shelter in Rafah have been bracing for an Israeli incursion for months, huddling in crowded tents, schools and apartments. Before arriving in Rafah, many had followed earlier Israeli calls to evacuate other areas in Gaza only to encounter bombardment in those places too.

Persons: Biden, Israel Locations: Israel, Gaza, Rafah, Israeli

☆ Middle East Crisis Israel Will Expand Civilian ‘Safe Zone’ if It Invades Crowded Gazan City, Official Says
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-23 | by ( Adam Rasgon | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +5 min

Palestinians who have sought shelter in Rafah have been bracing for an Israeli incursion for months, huddling in crowded tents, schools and apartments. Israeli officials have repeatedly said that the army will enter Rafah to fight Hamas battalions there, bucking international pressure to back off any operation. It was unclear how much Israel would expand Al-Mawasi but the area is already packed with people. Imagery taken on Thursday shows more than 100 tents in the area, while imagery captured on Sunday shows more than 400 in the complex. The Biden administration has repeatedly urged Israel to hold off on a major military assault on Rafah, including in a virtual meeting last week.

Persons: Biden, Israel, Jan, Sandra Rasheed, Israel hadn’t, Mawasi, Khan Younis, Mohammed al, ”, Jamie McGoldrick, Biden’s, “, ” Mr, Hassi, Rajab al, Lauren Leatherby Organizations: Al, Labs, United Nations Locations: Gaza, Rafah, Israeli, Israel, GAZA, Jerusalem, Al, Egypt, Gaza City

Israel’s military operations in Gaza have weakened Hamas. Thousands of its members have been killed, and at least one senior military leader has been eliminated. Yet Israel has not achieved its primary goals of the war: freeing hostages and fully destroying Hamas. The war and the tactics of the Israel Defense Forces have come at a great cost. Vast numbers of Palestinian civilians have been killed in the Israeli campaign; hunger is widespread in Gaza; and deaths around relief efforts have generated condemnation.

Persons: Israel Organizations: Hamas, Israel Defense Forces, Israel Locations: Gaza, Israel

☆ Middle East Crisis Senior Israeli Military Official Offers to Resign After Oct. 7 Intelligence Failures
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-22 | by ( Adam Rasgon | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +5 min

Mr. Netanyahu said in a social media post that his government would “act by all means” against any such move. The sanctions, if imposed, would not hold up the military aid that was just approved in Congress. The Israeli military disciplined three of the unit’s commanders after the investigation. Human rights organizations have long accused the Israeli military justice system of whitewashing wrongdoing and the military of acting with impunity. More than 34,000 Palestinians have been killed during the six months of war, according to Gazan health officials.

Persons: Benjamin Netanyahu, Mr, Netanyahu, Axios, Netzah Yehuda, Leahy, Yehuda, Omar Abdelmajed Assad, “, Assad’s, Biden, Benny Gantz, Yoav Gallant, Antony J, Blinken, Jacob J, Lew, Gallant, Mick Mulroy, ”, ” Natan Odenheimer, Gabby Sobelman Organizations: West Bank, Biden, Netzah, Jewish, Israel, Pentagon, State Locations: States, Gaza, Israel, Israel’s, Iran, U.S, United States

The United States is considering imposing sanctions on one or more Israeli battalions accused of human rights violations during operations in the occupied West Bank, according to a person familiar with the deliberations. Mr. Netanyahu said in a social media post that his government would “act by all means” against any such move. The news about the possible sanctions, reported earlier by Axios, came only a day after the House approved $26 billion for Israel and humanitarian aid for civilians in conflict zones, including Gaza. The sanctions, if imposed, would not hold up the military aid that was just approved in Congress. On Sunday, Palestinians in the West Bank went on a general strike to protest a deadly Israeli military raid at a refugee camp.

Persons: Benjamin Netanyahu, Mr, Netanyahu, Axios Organizations: West Bank, Biden, Sunday Locations: States, Gaza, Israel

☆ After Iran’s Barrage, Israel Questions What Might Be Next for the Gaza War
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-14 | by ( Adam Rasgon | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Within moments of Israel and its allies shooting down a fusillade of Iranian missiles and drones this weekend, many began wondering what the latest exchange between Israel and Iran would mean for the war in the Gaza Strip. But it occurred against the backdrop of the war in Gaza, where Israel is battling Hamas, a militant group funded and armed by Iran. Israeli military analysts were divided on whether a more direct confrontation with Iran would alter the war in Gaza, now in its sixth month. Some analysts argued that the implications for Gaza would depend on whether Israel responded with a major counterattack against Iran. In the case of a significant regional conflagration, General Brom said, Israel might choose to delay its plans to invade Rafah, which Israeli officials describe as the last Hamas stronghold.

Persons: Israel, Shlomo Brom, General Brom Organizations: Hamas Locations: Israel, Iran, Gaza, Israeli, Damascus, Rafah

☆ Leaders Urge Restraint as Israel Considers Retaliation Against Iran
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-14 | by ( Adam Rasgon | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +6 min

Mr. Netanyahu now must make a choice. Will he respond to Iran with a forceful counterattack and potentially entangle Israel and other countries in a broader war? No Israeli leader has warned about Iran so consistently as Mr. Netanyahu or, for that matter, has spent so long in office. Since his first year in office in 1996, Mr. Netanyahu warned that a nuclear Iran would be catastrophic and that time was running out. It was never clear if Mr. Netanyahu was bluffing, and the prospect of an imminent strike receded.

Persons: Benjamin Netanyahu, Netanyahu, ”, Mazal Mualem, “, ” Ms, Mualem, Efraim Halevy, Netanyahu’s, Jeremy Issacharoff, Obama, Barack Obama, bluffing, Donald J, Trump, Mr, Issacharoff, Israel, “ Bibi Organizations: Al, Mr, United Nations General Assembly, Munich Security Conference, of Foreign Affairs, United Locations: Israel, Iran, East, Iranian Embassy, Damascus, Gaza, Yemen, Syria, Lebanon, United States, Iranian, Israeli, Germany, U.S, States, Washington, United Arab Emirates

An Israeli airstrike on Wednesday killed three sons of one of the most senior leaders of Hamas, Ismail Haniyeh, who said the strike would not weaken the group’s negotiating position or its resolve in its fight against Israel. Mr. Haniyeh, who leads the Hamas political bureau from exile, is a longstanding leader of the group. He is also engaged in the stalled negotiations with Israel through international mediators who are seeking to broker a cease-fire and secure the release of Israeli hostages held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip. “The enemy is delusional if it thinks that by killing my children, we will change our positions,” Mr. Haniyeh said in a statement. “We shall not give in, no matter the sacrifices.”

Persons: Ismail Haniyeh, Haniyeh, ” Mr, ” Organizations: Israel Locations: Israel, Gaza

A senior Hamas official said on Wednesday that Hamas did not have 40 living hostages in Gaza who met the criteria for an exchange under a proposed cease-fire agreement with Israel being negotiated. A senior Israeli official said Israel had been relayed Hamas’s claim, and the senior Hamas official said that the group had informed mediators facilitating the negotiations. The Israeli official and the Hamas official requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the negotiations. Israeli officials believe there are about 130 hostages remaining in Gaza, and Israeli intelligence officers have concluded that at least 30 of those have died in captivity. It was not immediately clear if Israel would now demand that young men and soldiers be included among the first 40 released captives.

Persons: Israel Organizations: Hamas, Israeli Locations: Gaza, Israel

☆ String of Errors Led to Fatal Attack on Aid Convoy, Israeli Military Says
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-05 | by ( Aaron Boxerman | Adam Rasgon | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

A series of failures, including a breakdown in communication and violations of the rules of engagement, led to the deadly Israeli strikes that killed seven humanitarian aid workers in Gaza this week, senior Israeli military officials said on Friday. “It’s a tragedy,” Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, the Israeli military’s chief spokesman, told reporters in a briefing on Thursday night. “It’s a serious event that we’re responsible for, and it shouldn’t have happened.”On Friday, the Israeli military announced that two officers — a colonel and a major — would be dismissed from their positions. Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi, the Israeli military chief of staff, also decided to formally reprimand the head of Israel’s southern command, the military said in a statement. Israeli forces, the military said, began striking the convoy, belonging to the relief group World Central Kitchen, at 10:09 p.m. on Monday as the cars made their way along Gaza’s coast.

Persons: “, ”, Daniel Hagari, —, Herzi Halevi Locations: Gaza, Gaza’s

And when Russia invades Ukraine, he immediately decided it was time for World Central Kitchen to step into a war zone. michael barbaroAfter the break, my colleague Adam Rasgon on what happened to the World Central Kitchen workers in that caravan. So Adam, what ends up happening to this convoy that our colleague Kim Severson just described from World Central Kitchen? adam rasgonSo what we know is that members of the World Central Kitchen had been at a warehouse in Deir al-Balah in the Central Gaza Strip. michael barbaroAnd so what is the reaction from not just World Central Kitchen, but from the rest of the world to this airstrike?

Persons: michael barbaro, ” I’m Michael Barbaro, Kim Severson, Adam Rasgon, Kim, kim, José Andrés, you’re, kim severson, tapas, He’s, severson, he’s, kim severson He’s, Hurricane Sandy, Hurricane Harvey, Maria, Hurricane Maria, José, he’d, Goya, couldn’t, Nobody, there’s, they’ve, — michael barbaro, Chef Olivier, We’re, we’ve, Michael Jordan, Adam, adam rasgon, Al Rashid, Israel, adam rasgon There’s, adam rasgon President Biden, —, David Cameron —, david cameron, adam rasgon —, benjamin netanyahu, adam rasgon — Benjamin Netanyahu, Herzi Halevi, WCK, rasgon, that’s, michael barbaro Adam, it’s Organizations: The New York Times, Hurricane, Army, Federal Emergency Management Agency, FEMA, National Guard, Kitchen, Central, Central Kitchen, Gaza, UN, Red Crescent, White, British, IDF, Jerusalem Bureau Locations: Gaza, Haiti, Spanish, America, Washington ,, New York, DC, Miami, Hurricane, Houston, Puerto Rico, José, Russia, Ukraine, Poland, Lviv, Israel, North Gaza, Great Britain, Asia, Central America, Deir al, Rafah, Palestine, Jerusalem, Cyprus

☆ Back-to-Back Strikes by Israel Show Strengths and Limits of Accuracy
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-04 | by ( Mark Landler | Adam Rasgon | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

About 5 p.m. on Monday, Israeli warplanes streaked across the Syrian border, striking an embassy building in Damascus and killing a cadre of senior Iranian military commanders with the kind of pinpoint accuracy that has earned Israel’s military fear and respect across the Middle East. Several hours later, the same Israeli military rained missiles on an aid convoy on a coastal road in the Gaza Strip, a botched operation that left seven foreign aid workers dead and Israel’s reputation in tatters. Its leaders were forced to admit to a string of lethal mistakes and misjudgments. How one of the world’s best-equipped, best-trained militaries could pull off a dangerous strike on foreign soil and then stumble with such tragic consequences in Gaza raises a raft of hard questions — not least how the Israeli military enforces the rules of engagement in its war against Hamas.

Locations: Damascus, Gaza

☆ What We Know About the Israeli Strike That Killed 7 Aid Workers in Gaza
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-02 | by ( Adam Rasgon | Aaron Boxerman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Seven aid workers with World Central Kitchen were killed in the Gaza Strip when their convoy came under fire on Monday night, according to the aid organization and Gazan health officials. The disaster relief organization, founded by the Spanish chef José Andrés, said the convoy was hit in an Israeli strike. The Israeli military had been informed of the aid workers’ movements, the charity said. Aid workers had just unloaded more than 100 tons of food brought to Gaza by sea at the warehouse, according to the group. The imagery shows three destroyed white vehicles, with the northernmost and southernmost vehicles nearly a mile and a half apart.

Persons: José Andrés, Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel, ” Organizations: Central Kitchen, The New York Times Locations: Gaza, Spanish, Deir al Balah

Israeli strikes on an aid convoy run by the charity group World Central Kitchen killed seven of its workers in the Gaza Strip, setting off international outrage and underscoring the risks to humanitarian workers trying to alleviate a looming famine. The aid workers — a Palestinian, an Australian, a Pole, three Britons and a dual U.S.-Canadian citizen — were traveling in two armored vehicles clearly marked with the World Central Kitchen logo and a third vehicle when they came under fire late Monday night, according to the charity. The convoy was hit despite having coordinated its movements with the Israeli military, the group said. The workers were leaving a warehouse in Deir al Balah, in central Gaza, where the team had unloaded more than 100 tons of humanitarian food aid that had arrived by boat on Monday, World Central Kitchen said. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who rarely comments on deadly strikes in Gaza, released a videotaped statement on Tuesday in which he appeared to acknowledge that the Israeli military was responsible.

Persons: —, Benjamin Netanyahu, Mr, Netanyahu, ”, Herzi Halevi Organizations: Kitchen Locations: Gaza, Australian, U.S, Deir al Balah, Israel

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