Israel-Gaza conflict reside: Progress made in ceasefire and hostage launch talks, officers say, however deal not but reached

At the very least 46,584 Palestinian individuals have been killed and 109,731 injured in Israeli assaults on Gaza since 7 October 2023, the Gaza well being ministry mentioned in an announcement on Monday.

At the very least 19 Palestinians had been killed within the final 24 hours, the ministry mentioned.

Gaza’s well being ministry has mentioned prior to now that 1000’s of different useless individuals are almost definitely misplaced within the rubble of the territory.

Hey, and welcome to the Guardian’s reside protection of Israel’s conflict on Gaza and developments within the Center East extra broadly.

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the US president, Joe Biden, spoke yesterday about efforts to succeed in a ceasefire and hostage launch deal in Israel’s conflict on Gaza. Momentum appears to be constructing however uncertainty stays over key facets of the potential settlement.

The White Home mentioned Biden mentioned the “basically modified regional circumstances” following Israel’s ceasefire with Hezbollah in Lebanon, the speedy insurgent offensive that toppled former president Bashar al-Assad in Syria final month, and the dilution of Iran’s energy within the area after the Israeli army killed a lot of its senior management over the autumn.

Netanyahu was reported to have up to date Biden on directions he had given to senior negotiators in Doha “in an effort to advance the discharge of the hostages”. Western intelligence providers estimate that at the least one-third of the remaining 95 or so Israeli captives in Gaza have been killed. About 250 individuals had been taken hostage within the 7 October 2023 Hamas-led assaults on southern Israel, wherein an estimated 1,200 individuals had been killed.

Sunday’s name between Biden and Netanyahu got here as the top of Israel’s Mossad international intelligence company, David Barnea, and Biden’s most senior center east adviser, Brett McGurk, had been each in Doha. Barnea’s presence meant high-level Israeli officers who would want to log off on any settlement at the moment are concerned in talks.

McGurk has been engaged on remaining particulars of a textual content to be offered to each side. The US nationwide safety adviser, Jake Sullivan, informed CNN.

“We’re very, very shut,” he mentioned. “But being very shut nonetheless means we’re far as a result of till you truly get throughout the end line, we’re not there.”

An official briefed on the negotiations informed Reuters on Monday that Qatar has handed Israel and Hamas a “remaining” draft of a ceasefire and hostage launch settlement designed to finish the conflict. Now we have not been capable of independently confirm this declare.

Ceasefire talks have stalled repeatedly even when officers have expressed optimism about so-called breakthroughs. Netanyahu has been accused of delaying a deal for political functions, probably awaiting Donald Trump’s assumption of workplace on 20 January. Trump has mentioned there might be “hell to pay” if Hamas doesn’t launch its hostages earlier than he takes workplace, suggesting he’s in search of a deal earlier than the inauguration day.

As my colleague Lorenzo Tondo and Bethan McKernan be aware on this story, Hamas insists that any negotiations to safe the discharge of hostages should kind a part of a complete pact to finish the hostilities in Gaza, whereas Netanyahu is in search of a extra segmented settlement, aiming for a deal that may see the liberation of some, although not all, hostages, whereas concurrently preserving Israel’s prerogative to recommence hostilities in opposition to Hamas upon the deal’s expiration.

Israel’s finance minister, Bezalel Smotrich, has criticised the deal being labored out in Gaza, saying it’s a “disaster” for Israel’s safety and was a “give up” to Hamas.

Netanyahu has grow to be extra reliant on the help of Smotrich and different far-right parts of his coalition authorities – corresponding to nationwide safety minister Itamar Ben–Gvir – because the former defence minister Benny Gantz stop Israel’s emergency conflict cupboard in a row over technique within the conflict and the best way to convey dwelling Israeli hostages held by Hamas. We’ll convey you the most recent on the ceasefire negotiations all through the day.