“There was a good meeting and we are identifying the green shoots of progress.” The Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth writes this, quoting an official who participated in the meeting in Paris on negotiations for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and the release of the Israeli hostages still held captive by Hamas.
According to New York Times sources, More than 100 hostages could be released in exchange for stopping military operations Israelis in the Gaza Strip for a period of two months.
A first phase would last 30 days, in which Hamas should, in exchange for the truce, release the women, the elderly and the wounded. In the second phase, of another 30 days of truce, the Israeli men and soldiers should be freed. The White House sent the director of the CIA, William Burns, to Paris to mediate the negotiations. Also present at the talks were representatives of Israel, Egypt and Qatar. The number of Palestinian prisoners that Israel will have to release is yet to be defined.
Guterres appeals for funds to UNRWA
United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres promises legal consequences following charges against 12 UNRWA employees of involvement in the attacks against Israel on October 7th. “Any employee involved in acts of terror will be held accountable, including with criminal investigations,” he said in a UN note. The United Nations Office of Internal Audit has opened an investigation. So far, nine of the 12 agency employees accused by Israel of involvement in the Hamas attacks have been identified and fired immediately. A tenth was declared dead and the identity of the remaining two is being examined by investigators. “The tens of thousands of men and women who work for UNRWA, many of them in some of the most difficult situations for humanitarian workers, must not be penalised. The essential needs of a desperate population they seek to alleviate must be taken care of“, he added, urging the countries that have suspended their contribution to the agency, including Italy, to guarantee the continuity of its work.
Intense fighting around Khan Younis
The Israel Defense Forces reports intense fighting around Khan Younisin the southern Gaza Strip, where “weapons were found in large quantities”.
Israel will send soldiers to the border with Egypt
Israel informed Egypt last night of its intention to send its forces military as far as the south of the Gaza Strip, in Rafah and along the 'Philadelphia Corridor', a buffer between Israel and Egypt, despite Cairo's opposition to such a step, Sky News Arabia announced. Relations between Israel and Egypt are clearly deteriorating. Benjamin Netanyahu has not spoken to Abdel Fattah al-Sisi for weeks, with the Egyptian president rejecting the Israeli Prime Minister's calls.
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