WASHINGTON: The United States will continue to press for extending a truce in Gaza, the White House said Friday, as intense fighting erupted once again in the Israel-Hamas war.
“We continue to work with Israel, Egypt, and Qatar on efforts to extend the humanitarian pause in Gaza,” a White House National Security Council spokesperson said.
Under the truce which lasted a week, Hamas militants released 80 Israeli hostages in exchange for 240 Palestinian prisoners. More humanitarian aid was also delivered into war-devastated Gaza.
But the prospects of reestablishing a truce were being stymied because “Hamas has so far failed to produce a list of hostages that would enable a further extension of the pause,” the NSC spokesperson said.
President Joe Biden and his national security team “will continue to remain deeply engaged as we look to free the remaining hostages,” the NSC spokesperson said.
On Thursday, Washington’s top diplomat, Antony Blinken, also called for a truce extension while meeting Israeli and Palestinian officials during a visit to the region.
The fighting began on October 7 when Hamas militants broke through Gaza’s militarized border into Israel.
During the unprecedented attack, Hamas killed about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and kidnapped around 240, according to Israeli authorities.
In response, Israel vowed to eliminate Hamas and unleashed an air and ground military campaign in Gaza that the Hamas authorities who run Gaza say has killed almost 15,000 people, also mostly civilians.
US to press for extending Gaza truce: White House
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US to press for extending Gaza truce: White House
- “We continue to work with Israel, Egypt, and Qatar on efforts to extend the humanitarian pause in Gaza,” a White House National Security Council spokesperson said
- President Joe Biden and his national security team “will continue to remain deeply engaged as we look to free the remaining hostages"
UN chief Guterres warns ‘powerful forces’ undermining global ties
- Guterres paid tribute to Britain for its decisive role in the creation of the United Nations
- He said 2025 had been a “profoundly challenging year for international cooperation and the values of the UN“
LONDON: UN chief Antonio Guterres Saturday deplored a host of “powerful forces lining up to undermine global cooperation” in a London speech marking the 80th anniversary of the first UN General Assembly.
Guterres, whose term as secretary-general ends on December 31 this year, delivered the warning at the Methodist Central Hall in London, where representatives from 51 countries met on January 10, 1946, for the General Assembly’s first session.
They met in London because the UN headquarters in New York had not yet been built.
Guterres paid tribute to Britain for its decisive role in the creation of the United Nations and for continuing to champion it.
But he said 2025 had been a “profoundly challenging year for international cooperation and the values of the UN.”
“We see powerful forces lining up to undermine global cooperation,” he said, adding: “Despite these rough seas, we sail ahead.”
Guterres cited a new treaty on marine biological diversity as an example of continued progress.
The treaty establishes the first legal framework for the conservation and sustainable use of marine diversity in the two-thirds of oceans beyond national limits.
“These quiet victories of international cooperation — the wars prevented, the famine averted, the vital treaties secured — do not always make the headlines,” he said.
“Yet they are real. And they matter.”
