CAIRO: The leaders of Qatar and Egypt met in Cairo on Friday, both hoping to mediate a de-escalation of violence in the Gaza Strip, the provision of humanitarian aid and the release of Israeli hostages.
The talks between Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani discussed intensified efforts to achieve a cease-fire in Gaza and the delivery of sufficient quantities of aid for its 2.3 million besieged residents, a statement from El-Sisi’s office said.
Qatar said “joint efforts to stop the aggression against Gaza, reduce escalation and bring in urgent humanitarian aid” were discussed.
The Qatari emir’s visit comes a day after Qatar’s prime minister met the chiefs of the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and Israeli spy agency Mossad in Doha to discuss the parameters of a deal for a hostage release and a pause in fighting between Israel and Hamas.
Qatar, where several Hamas political leaders are based, has been leading mediation between the Palestinian militant group and Israeli officials for the release of more than 240 hostages taken by Hamas militants on Oct. 7, in an attack in which Israel says 1,400 people were killed.
Since then Israel has launched an unrelenting bombardment and an armored invasion of Hamas-ruled Gaza, where more than 10,000 people have been killed, according to Palestinian officials.
Egypt also has contacts with Hamas and Israel and has been involved in negotiations, including for the provision of aid through its Rafah border crossing with Gaza and the evacuation from the territory of foreign passport holders and some Palestinians requiring urgent medical treatment.
Evacuations through Rafah restarted on Thursday following a pause after the Red Cross said one of its convoys escorting evacuees was targeted inside Gaza.
The United Nations said 65 aid trucks entered Gaza from Egypt on Thursday, well below the number needed to address a deepening humanitarian crisis.
The United States said on Thursday that Israel had agreed to daily four-hour pauses in the north of Gaza and the operation of corridors for civilians to move south, though there was no sign of a let-up in the fighting.
Qatar’s emir visits Egypt for talks on ending Gaza violence
https://arab.news/vqjsr
Qatar’s emir visits Egypt for talks on ending Gaza violence
- Leaders will cover ways to calm the situation in Gaza and provide humanitarian relief
- Qatari emir’s visit comes a day after Qatar’s prime minister met the chiefs of the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and Israeli spy agency Mossad in Doha
Hundreds mourn in Syria’s Homs after deadly mosque bombing
- Officials have said the preliminary investigations indicate explosive devices were planted inside the mosque but have not yet publicly identified a suspect
HOMS: Hundreds of mourners gathered Saturday despite rain and cold outside of a mosque in the Syrian city of Homs where a bombing the day before killed eight people and wounded 18.
The crowd gathered next to the Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib Mosque in the Wadi Al-Dhahab neighborhood, where the population is predominantly from the Alawite minority, before driving in convoys to bury the victims.
Officials have said the preliminary investigations indicate explosive devices were planted inside the mosque but have not yet publicly identified a suspect.
A little-known group calling itself Saraya Ansar Al-Sunna claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement posted on its Telegram channel, in which it indicated that the attack intended to target members of the Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shia Islam whom hard-line Islamists consider to be apostates.
The same group had previously claimed a suicide attack in June in which a gunman opened fire and then detonated an explosive vest inside a Greek Orthodox church in Dweil’a, on the outskirts of Damascus, killing 25 people as worshippers prayed on a Sunday.
A neighbor of the mosque, who asked to be identified only by the honorific Abu Ahmad (“father of Ahmad“) out of security concerns, said he was at home when he heard the sound of a “very very strong explosion.”
He and other neighbors went to the mosque and saw terrified people running out of it, he said. They entered and began trying to help the wounded, amid blood and scattered body parts on the floor.
While the neighborhood is primarily Alawite, he said the mosque had always been open to members of all sects to pray.
“It’s the house of God,” he said. “The mosque’s door is open to everyone. No one ever asked questions. Whoever wants to enter can enter.”
Mourners were unable to enter the mosque to pray Saturday because the crime scene remained cordoned off, so they prayed outside.
Some then marched through the streets chanting “Ya Ali,” in reference to the Prophet Muhammad’s cousin and son-in-law whom Shiite Muslims consider to be his rightful successor.
