The United States, a mediator in the talks, has been pushing for Israel and Hamas to sign a cease-fire agreement since the deal was announced by U.S. President Joe Biden in late May. But urgency to get it done has ramped up in recent weeks as Iran has vowed to conducted a retaliatory strike on Israel over the assassinations of Tehran proxy militia leaders in Lebanon and Iran.
According to the Hamas-run Palestinian Health Ministry, which does not differentiate between militant and civilian, nearly 40,000 Palestinians have been killed in the war.
The Biden administration sent CIA Director William Burns and Brett McGurk, the White House's Middle East and North Africa envoy, to represent the United States at the talks.
Israel said Wednesday that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu approved the departure of his delegation, but Hamas has repeatedly said it was refusing to attend.
Despite Hamas' public rejections, the Biden administration heading into Thursday voiced confidence that the negotiations would go ahead as planned.
As the talks were under way, both Biden and White House National Security Communications Advisor John Kirby separately told the press that the militant organization was being represented by Egypt and Qatar, the other two nations mediating the discussion.
Kirby told reporters during a press conference that gaps had been narrowed ahead of the talks and that Thursday would be focused on agreement implementation details with expectations for negotiations to continue Friday.
"We do not anticipate coming out of these talks today with a deal," he said.
Last week, Biden administration officials were vocal that the agreement was near complete, and Kirby explained Thursday that its framework was done and what was left was "individual muscle movements" to put it in place.
The mediating countries of the United States, Qatar and Egypt scheduled Thursday for the resumption of talks last week, stating "there is no further time to waste nor excuses for any party for further delay" to get a deal done.
Israel and Iran have been in a proxy war for years that violently erupted into a war in Gaza on Oct. 7 when Tehran proxy militia Hamas launched a bloody assault on Israel, killing 1,200 Israelis, while another 250 were kidnapped and taken back into Gaza.
Israel has responded by razing much of the Palestinian enclave in its determination to eliminate Hamas and find the Israelis held captive. Meanwhile, Iranian proxy militias Hezbollah of Lebanon and and the Houthi rebels of Yemen, embolden by the conflict, have also been attacking Israel.
Late last month, Fuad Shukr, the commander of Hezbollah, was assassinated in Lebanon. The next day, Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was killed in Iran.
Though Israel has claimed responsibility for Shukr, it has not commented on the death of Haniyeh. Iran holds Israel responsible for both assassinations and has vowed to retaliate.
Fears surround the potential of an Iranian strike as one will not only potentially thwart the possibility of securing a cease-fire but also escalate and expand the more than 300-day war through the Middle East.
Last week's call for the resumption of cease-fire talks comes against the backdrop of these rising tensions and the Biden administration for days was confidently stating that the cease-fire deal was nearly done and that they were working to hold off Iran's retaliation strike.
On Tuesday, Biden told reporters that he believes a cease-fire agreement will halt an Iran strike on Israel.
"That's my expectation, but we'll see," he said.
Israeli settlers attack occupied West Bank village, killing one Palestinian
Washington DC (UPI) Aug 16, 2024 -
Dozens of Israeli settlers rioted in an occupied West Bank village Thursday night, torching vehicles and buildings, the Israeli military said, resulting in at least one death, according to Palestinian reports.
The Israel Defense Forces said the settlers, some masked, entered the village of Jit and were throwing stones and Molotov cocktails.
The Palestinian Ministry of Health said one Palestinian was killed and another was critically injured, according to WAFA, the state-run news agency of the Palestinian Authority.
The victim was identified as 22-year-old Rashid Mahmoud Sedda. The identity of the man critically injured was not released to the public, but the Palestine Red Crescent Society said he had sustained a chest wound and was rushed to a hospital, WAFA reported.
UPI has contacted the Palestinian Ministry of Health for confirmation. The IDF said it was looking into the reports.
A video of the incident circulated online by the Israel-based Yeshin Din human rights organization shows a car fully engulfed in flames while people can be heard screaming.
Four houses and six cars were burned in the riot, according to Yeshin Din.
Israeli soldiers and agents of Israel Border Patrol were on the scene "within minutes" of receiving reports of the violence, the IDF said, adding that the settlers were dispersed from the village.
At least one settler was arrested and turned over to Israel Police, though the IDF did not explain on what offense.
The IDF, Shin Bet security agency and Israel Police have launched an investigation into the riot, which was condemned by the IDF and other Israeli officials.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel said he takes the riot "seriously" and vowed that those responsible "for any criminal act will be caught and prosecuted."
President Isaac Herzog of Israel said he "strongly" condemns the attack that he said was carried out by "an extreme minority" that tarnishes the reputation of the "law-abiding community of settlers and the settlement as a whole."
"Law enforcement officials must act immediately against this serious phenomenon and bring the lawbreakers to justice," he said.
Jewish settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory of the West Bank, East Jerusalem and Golan Heights are widely regarded as illegal under international law, and greater attention has been placed on Israel's occupation amid its war against Hamas in the Palestinian enclave of Gaza.
Amid the war, extremist settler violence has surged. According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, there have been some 1,250 attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinians between Oct. 7 and Monday. The agency said 1,000 of those attacks resulted in property damage and 130 resulted in property damage and causalities, while 120 resulted in both Palestinian deaths and injuries.
The repot also stated that there have been 549 Palestinians killed in the occupied West Bank during that time, with only 10 blamed on Israeli settlers with another seven deaths where the perpetrators were unknown.
Democratic governments, including the United State, the European Union, Britain and Canada, have responded to the increase in violence with sanctions targeting individuals and entire outposts. The Biden administration has repeatedly said that the settlements stand in the way of achieving lasting peace in the region.
The cause of Thursday's night riot was not entirely clear, though Netanyahu said in his message that it was only the IDF and security forces who fought terrorism "and no one else."
The U.S.-based Jewish Israel Policy Forum called on all Israeli settlers involved in the riot to be arrested.
"Until the Israeli government treats it as the systemic terrorism that it is, incidents like this will continue," it said in a statement.
"It is imperative that all involved are arrested, prosecuted and face justice, and that illegal settlement and settler violence are treated as a law enforcement priority."
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