Hamas sending team to Egypt for ceasefire talks
- A Hamas delegation is heading to Cairo on Sunday after an Egyptian invitation to discuss the developments in a ceasefire agreement, a senior Hamas source has told Al Jazeera.
- Video footage verified by Al Jazeera’s Sanad fact-checking unit shows two trucks carrying aid driving through northern Gaza.
Families say time has run out for Gaza captives
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum says the return of Elad Katzir’s body from Gaza is a “painful, immediate, and harsh reminder that time has long run out for the hostages”.
“There is no time for negotiations, no time for power struggles, no time for international diplomacy,” read a statement from the group.
The Israeli army announced earlier today that the body of Katzir, who was taken captive on October 7, was retrieved from Khan Younis.
The forum said the 47-year-old “was held alive by Hamas for three months, during which signs of life were given and reports of his condition reached Israel.
“Three months in which there was a possibility to save him and return him alive to his family and his country.”
Palestinians not getting hopes up over ceasefire negotiations
Everybody here is very cautious about their optimism. Over the past few months, there have been talks about a possible deal being reached, but people were let down horribly.
They are at the point that they do not care much whether a delegation is going to Cairo or Doha or anywhere, as long as there is not a solid announcement of practical steps [to improve the situation] on the ground.
The way a lot of people look at the situation is: On the one hand, there are these talks of a potential deal, of increasing aid; but at the same time, we’re looking at a record number of people dying, a sheer level of destruction.
People are being very careful in their response after the many times they were disappointed by the failure to reach a good ceasefire deal.
Pressure grows to bring captives home after body of Elad Katzir recovered
The family of this 47-year-old man has posted on social media calling the government “cowardly”, saying it took way too long for something like this to happen.
There’s been a lot of pressure on Israel’s government to bring back the remaining captives who are held in Gaza.
The Israeli prime minister has maintained that military pressure is the only way to bring them back, but you can see in Israeli society that the protests against Israel’s government and calling for the release of the captives are much more angry.
They are much more aggressive, and they say Netanyahu needs to be removed from office because of these policies that have not brought back the remaining Israeli captives.
Thousands attend funeral of Iranian senior officer killed in Damascus
Thousands of people have attended the funeral of Mohammad Reza Zahedi, a high-ranking officer in Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), according to the ISNA news agency.
Zahedi was buried in the Iranian city of Isfahan, his birthplace.
The 63-year-old Zahedi, his deputy and five other IRGC officers were killed in an alleged Israeli air strike on the Iranian consulate in the Syrian capital, Damascus, on Monday.
‘We are doing everything we can’ to expand health access: UNRWA
The UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) is providing critical health services to thousands of Palestinians each day at more than 70 health centres in the besieged enclave, the agency says.
The agency’s services include about 25,000 daily medical consultations, regular healthcare for those suffering from chronic conditions, and vaccinations, according to the UNRWA – which is facing an unprecedented funding crisis.
“UNRWA is a lifeline in Gaza providing lifesaving healthcare,” said UNRWA health director Akihiro Seita. “We are doing everything we can” despite the desperate conditions.
Aid trucks getting in just a trickle
Within the last hour, we’ve seen footage of three trucks entering northern Gaza. There is one truck with fuel and two trucks full of cardboard boxes that appear to be medical supplies. These three trucks were accompanied by UN vehicles.
The number [of aid trucks] getting in is still a trickle in the face of the growing famine conditions in northern Gaza.
Everyone here expects the number to increase in the coming days.
However, while we’re seeing that some trucks are getting in, the Israeli military is still continuing with its air and artillery strikes, pounding major parts of Gaza, including the central and eastern areas.
Ireland’s sovereign investment fund to divest from 6 Israeli firms
Finance Minister Michael McGrath says Ireland’s 15-billion-euro ($16.3bn) sovereign investment fund will divest from six Israeli companies, including some of its largest banks, over their activities in the occupied Palestinian territory.
The Ireland Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF), which invests at home to support economic growth but also holds a portfolio of liquid international assets, has come under pressure from the main opposition party, Sinn Fein, to divest the assets.
Long a champion of Palestinian rights, Ireland last month joined Spain, Malta and Slovenia in taking the first steps towards recognising Palestinian statehood in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
“I have been advised by the National Treasury Management Agency (NTMA) that it has decided to divest from certain ISIF global portfolio investments in companies that have certain activities in the Occupied Palestinian Territory,” McGrath said in a statement on Friday.
Pressure on Biden will put pressure on Netanyahu
As dozens of congressional Democrats call on US President Joe Biden to stop weapons transfers to Israel, Qatar University’s Hassan Barari says the demand – once seen as a “left-leaning” call – is now mainstream.
Barari said that, with prominent figures such as Nancy Pelosi joining the calls, and the president’s concerns over re-election in November, Biden might change course and take a tougher stance with Israel.
“If Biden conditions providing Israel with ammunition and weapons with [Israeli PM] Netanyahu’s compliance with American demands, I think Netanyahu will change course because Netanyahu is known as someone who only appears as he is in defiance but if there’s a price tag he will give in,” he told Al Jazeera.
Hamas delegation to go to Cairo on Sunday for ceasefire talks
A Hamas delegation is heading to Cairo on Sunday after an Egyptian invitation to discuss the developments of the ceasefire agreement, a senior Hamas source has told Al Jazeera.
The source said that intensive contacts took place between Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh and mediators to resume the negotiations in Cairo.
Haniyeh told mediators that any round of negotiations should start on the basis of a permanent ceasefire, the source added.
Aid trucks seen driving through northern Gaza
Footage verified by Al Jazeera’s Sanad fact-checking unit shows two trucks carrying aid driving through northern Gaza.
The footage, shared by Palestinian journalist Mohammed Abu Amsha, documents the trucks, escorted by a UN convoy, shows residents cheering as the trucks pass through.
Israel announced on Friday it would reopen the Beit Hanoon crossing for aid deliveries, following pressure from US President Biden to do more to protect civilians and humanitarian workers.
