It is the TV station Al-Qahera that announced the news on Monday morning. The station has links to Egypt’s intelligence service. It cites a source as saying an agreement is being worked on before the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan. The information has not been confirmed by other sources, Much is still unclear regarding how far the negotiators in Cairo have come. Representatives from Egypt and Qatar are present. Qatar represents Hamas, since Israel will not meet Gaza’s leaders directly. Israel’s delegation will not come now. Much must be done before the parties agree on a ceasefire: Israel demands that the hostages be released. Hamas demands that Palestinian prisoners be released in exchange for the hostages. Hamas demands that Palestinians must be allowed to go to their homes in the north of the Gaza Strip. The fighting must be stopped. The borders must be opened for emergency aid and foodstuffs. DESPAIR: Palestinians who have sought refuge in Rafah look at the damage after another Israeli airstrike today. International pressure is increasing for the attacks, suffering and food shortages to end after five months of war. Photo: AP A high-ranking Hamas official believes that an agreement to release hostages can only be reached at the beginning of Ramadan, i.e. a few days after March 10, according to the Israeli newspaper Haaretz. LEADER: The Hamas leader in Gaza Yahya Sinwar Photo: AP Egyptian and Qatari officials in Cairo are unsure whether the talks can be carried out, partly because the Hamas leader in Gaza Yahya Sinwar cannot be reached. He has previously given Hamas’ representatives told not to be too quick to sign an agreement, according to the Israeli newspaper. Positive, but… – The reports of progress are positive, says researcher at PRIO, Jørgen Jensehaugen to news: – At the same time, we see that Israel is demanding that Hamas submit a list of which hostages are alive and which are not, continues he. A RED LINE: Jørgen Jensehaugen believes that the international community will soon have to say that enough is enough in Gaza. – There must be some red lines, says the PRIO researcher Photo: NTB Israel boycotted the ceasefire talks in Cairo yesterday. That after Hamas rejected the demand to present a complete list of the hostages. Hamas claims that the Israeli hostages are spread among several families, and that it is therefore difficult to keep track of them. – Hamas should have been able to obtain an overview of where the hostages are now several months after 7 October, but we also cannot be sure whether they know this, says Jensehaugen. PRESSURE INCREASES in the USA: Protesters gathered outside the Israeli embassy in Washington DC at the weekend. They are demanding a ceasefire now, and are asking Israel not to send ground forces into Rafah. Photo: Reuters The US increases the pressure US Vice President Kamala Harris made clear demands on Israel last night and asked for an immediate ceasefire. – People in Gaza are starving. Conditions are inhumane, and our common humanity compels us to act, Harris said. INCREASES THE PRESSURE: – Let’s have a truce. Let us reunite the hostages with their families, and let us provide immediate aid to the people of Gaza, says US Vice President Kamala Harris. Photo: AFP – The Israeli government must do more to significantly increase aid flows. There are no excuses, she added. Harris’ statements are among the harshest to date from a senior leader of the US government who has called on Israel to improve conditions in Gaza. – Hamas claims that they want a ceasefire. There is an agreement on the table. And as we have said, Hamas must agree to that agreement. Let’s have a truce. Let us reunite the hostages with their families, and let us provide immediate aid to the people of Gaza, concludes Harris. Meeting in the White House Tonight Israeli Minister Benny Gantz will meet Vice President Kamala Harris in the White House. Gantz was brought into Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s war cabinet after Hamas attacked Israel on October 7. TO THE USA: Benny Gantz is a minister in Israel’s war cabinet. Now he will soon meet US Vice President Kamala Harris at the White House. Photo: AFP That it is Gantz who is coming and not Netanyahu is interesting, says the Middle East researcher: – It may indicate that there is some kind of division in the Israeli government. It is also no secret that Netanyahu is not well liked in the White House. Although the US is increasing the rhetorical pressure with sharper wording now, Jensehaugen points out that the Biden administration continues to supply Israel with weapons, as well as continues to veto the Security Council. – The big question is how the US moves from this rhetorical pressure to political pressure. At one point or another, the world community must come to the conclusion that this cannot go on any longer and that Israel has now gone too far in Gaza. The crisis is getting worse After five months of war, the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip is described as catastrophic. Israel, which is being investigated by the UN tribunal for violations of the UN Genocide Convention, is limiting the amount of emergency aid allowed into the area. FOOD QUEUES: People are queuing to receive food and emergency aid in northern Gaza. Photo: AFP According to Palestinian health authorities, children have begun to starve to death. According to the UN, one in four inhabitants of the Palestinian Territory is on the brink of famine. So far, 30,534 Palestinians have been recorded killed and 71,980 injured in Israeli attacks since October 7, according to Palestinian health authorities. According to Palestinian health authorities, over 70 percent of the victims are children and women. AIR DROP: Since the US has not succeeded in persuading Israel to bring in more emergency aid to Gaza via the borders, the US itself is sending food rations by air drop. Here, 38,000 meals are prepared in a Hercules flight. – This is only to dampen the criticism at home, says a former head of USAid. Photo: Reuters The figure has not been confirmed by independent sources, but the UN has concluded that the Palestinian authorities’ figures for those killed have been credible in previous conflicts. Israel, for its part, claims to have killed 13,000 Hamas soldiers since 7 October. PRESSURE INCREASES in the USA: Protesters gathered outside the Israeli embassy in Washington DC at the weekend. They are demanding a ceasefire now, and are asking Israel not to send ground forces into Rafah. Photo: Reuters Listen to URIX, the foreign editor’s podcast about the enemies who became friends.
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