Israel to join Cairo talks on Gaza truce and hostage release, Israeli official says

A man stands in the midst of devastation caused by months of Israeli bombardment in Khan Yunis on April 7, 2024, after Israel pulled its ground forces out of the southern Gaza Strip. (AFP)
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Updated 08 April 2024
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Israel to join Cairo talks on Gaza truce and hostage release, Israeli official says

  • Netanyahu: No ceasefire in Gaza until hostages held by Hamas are released

JERUSALEM: An Israeli delegation will take part in the latest round of negotiations in Cairo aimed at reaching a truce in the Gaza conflict and a hostage release deal, an Israeli government official said on Sunday.

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also said on Sunday that Israel would not agree to a ceasefire after six months of war against Hamas in Gaza until the hostages being held in Gaza are released.

His comments made at the start of a weekly cabinet meeting came as the new round of truce talks in Egypt were set to begin.

Netanyahu said that despite growing international pressure, Israel would not give in to “extreme” demands from Gaza’s Islamist rulers Hamas, which sparked the war on Oct. 7 with its deadly attack on southern Israel.

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Israeli military says missiles launched from Iran toward Israel

Updated 6 sec ago
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Israeli military says missiles launched from Iran toward Israel

  • Israeli broadcaster Channel 12 reported several injuries from the Iranian strikes near Tel Aviv

JERUSALEM: Israel’s military said Wednesday that it detected missiles heading toward the country from Iran and had activated air defenses, as it pressed a “wave” of strikes against Iran and Lebanon.
“A short while ago, the IDF identified missiles launched from Iran toward the territory of the State of Israel. Defensive systems are operating to intercept the threat,” the military said on its official Telegram account.
AFP journalists heard air raid sirens sounding in Jerusalem and the sound of explosions in the distance.
A short time later, Israel’s military said it was permitted to leave shelters.
Israel’s Magen David Adom emergency services reported no immediate injuries following the missile fire, but said its teams were treating “a small number of people who were injured on their way to protected areas.”
Israeli broadcaster Channel 12 reported several injuries from the Iranian strikes near Tel Aviv.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they targeted a satellite communications center in Haifa, along with military bases in Israel, and US targets elsewhere in the Middle East including Iraqi Kurdistan and the US Fifth Fleet naval base in Bahrain.
“We will continue our sustained attacks with purpose and power, and in this war, we contemplate nothing but the enemy’s complete surrender,” the Guards said on their website Sepah News.