The US has called on Hamas to agree to a bridging proposal for a ceasefire in Gaza after it gained the backing of Israel.
Speaking after a meeting with Israel’s prime minister, US secretary of state Antony Blinken said Benjamin Netanyahu had agreed with the proposal – which would lead to a ceasefire and see the return of Israeli hostages.
The US politician did not say whether the so-called bridging proposal addressed Israel’s demands for control over two strategic corridors inside Gaza – a condition Hamas has previously called a non-starter – or other issues that have long bedevilled the negotiations.
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Mr Blinken said there were still “complex issues” requiring “hard decisions by the leaders,” without offering specifics.
“There is a real sense of urgency here, across the region, on the need to get this over the finish line and to do it as soon as possible. The United States is deeply committed to getting this job done,” Mr Blinken said.
“[The proposal] is the single best way not only to get the hostages home [and] to ease the suffering of people in Gaza, it is also the best way to make sure that conflict doesn’t spread, that we don’t see escalation, that we can actually defuse some of the pressure points that we see throughout the region, and then open prospects for trying to build a more enduring peace and security for everyone throughout the Middle East.”
In what Mr Blinken described as a “very constructive” meeting with Mr Netanyahu, he said the violence committed by settlers in the West Bank came up in discussions – but the secretary of state did not elaborate.
Mr Blinken added that he would also be travelling to Egypt and Qatarsoon and that Israel had committed to sending an expert team to the two countries.
The US, Egypt, and Qatar have spent months trying to broker an agreement, with the talks repeatedly stalling.
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The key sticking point which could collapse bridging proposal for Gaza ceasefire
Antony Blinken’s announcement is an optimistic end to a day that began with serious doubts about the potential ceasefire.
Although the details haven’t been revealed, it concerns the presence of Israeli forces in strategic parts of Gaza in the event of a deal.
Benjamin Netanyahu has insisted the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) remain along the Philidelphi Corridor, the border between Gaza and Egypt.
This was a valuable smuggling route for Hamas for years, and Netanyahu says he cannot allow Hamas a chance to re-arm if the IDF withdraws.
Israeli officials are insisting that remains their position, and so whatever the US workaround is, is intriguing, although it might involve a partial or phased pull-back and security cooperation with Egypt and a third party.
Hamas has repeatedly rejected any continued presence of the Israeli military in Gaza, even reiterating that position to Sky News in recent days.
The US, one of three mediators in the talks, is unlikely to have put forward a proposal without believing it has at least a chance of receiving approval from Hamas, but if the group sticks to its demand for a full Israeli withdrawal then the bridging proposal will quickly collapse.
The high-stakes negotiations have gained speed in recent days as diplomats hope an agreement will deter Iran and Lebanon’s Hezbollah from avenging the targeted killings of two top militants, that Tehran has blamed on Israel.
The escalating tensions have raised fears of an even more destructive regional war.
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Mother and her six children killed in Gaza
The secretary of state had earlier said the latest push for a deal was probably the best and possibly last opportunity, urging both sides towards agreement.
Despite US expressions of optimism and Mr Netanyahu’s office describing the meeting as positive, both Israel and Hamas have signalled that any deal will be difficult.
Hamas accused Mr Netanyahu on Sunday of “thwarting the mediators’ efforts” and Turkey said Hamas envoys had told it that US officials were “painting an overly optimistic picture”.
The current conflict in Gaza began in the wake of 7 October last year when Hamas gunmen stormed across the border into Israel, killing around 1,200 people and abducting about 250 hostages according to Israeli tallies.
Israel’s military campaign has since levelled swathes of Gaza, displacing the majority of its 2.1 million population, and killing at least 40,000 people, according to the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza.
A woman who accused Conor McGregor of raping her has said “justice has been served” after she won her civil case against the Irish mixed martial arts fighter.
Nikita Hand has been awarded €248,603 (£206,000) in damages after a jury at Dublin’s High Court found McGregor assaulted her in a Dublin hotel in 2018.
McGregor, 36, made no comment as he swiftly left court following the decision on Friday evening.
He later said in a statement that he had instructed his legal team to appeal the civil court’s decision, adding he was “disappointed that the jury did not hear all the evidence that the director of public prosecutions reviewed”.
He ended the statement saying: “I am with my family, focused on my future.”
McGregor had previously told the court he had consensual sex with Ms Hand in a penthouse at the Beacon Hotel in December 2018.
‘No matter who the person is, justice will be served’
Speaking outside court after the decision, an emotional Ms Hand said the last two weeks of her civil case against the fighter have been a “nightmare” and has impacted not only her life but her daughter’s, friends and loved ones.
“I would like to start off by saying I’m overwhelmed and touched by the support I have received from everybody,” the mother-of-one said.
“It’s something that I’ll never forget for the rest of my life.
“Now that justice has been served, I can now try and move on and look forward to the future with my family and friends and daughter.”
Ms Hand continued: “I hope my story is a reminder that no matter how afraid you might be: Speak up, you have a voice and keep on fighting for justice.
“You can stand up for yourself if something happens to you – no matter who the person is – and justice will be served.”
Ms Hand told the civil court McGregor pinned her to a bed, choked her three times and “brutally raped and battered” her.
The jury was told she was left with extensive injuries, including purple and blue bruising along her hands and wrists, a bloodied scratch to her breast and tenderness to her neck.
McGregor no longer known for just his sporting abilities
There was not an inch to move in this tiny civil courtroom in centre Dublin.
The jury sat for six hours and 10 minutes, determining the future of one of Ireland’s biggest stars.
You could cut the tension with a knife.
McGregor sat stoney faced taking intermittent, deep heavy breaths as the clerk of the court declared the jury had reached their decision.
The judge sternly told the public gallery he would “jail” anyone who caused a scene when the news came out.
It was a sign of the high stakes in this case.
Within 40 seconds, the judge read out the news that McGregor was dreading, and Nikita Hand was determined to get.
“Did Conor McGregor assault Nikita Hand?”
“Yes” came the reply.
The blood drained from McGregor’s face. His head in his hands.
As the MMA star stepped out of court, he entered a new era. He walked straight to his Bentley, ignoring questions from reporters about whether he feels remorse.
He is no longer just a household name for his sporting abilities.
But lawyers for the fighter contested the lawsuit and accused her of attempted “extortion”.
They pointed to CCTV footage of Ms Hand arriving at and leaving the hotel with McGregor and a second man, James Lawrence, whom she also accused of assault.
Both McGregor and Lawrence denied any wrongdoing. While Ms Hand won her case against McGregor, she lost her claim against Lawrence.
On Monday, McGregor’s legal team told jurors it did not matter if they did not like or even loathed the famous fighter, urging them to look at the evidence and not his character.
McGregor and Ms Hand knew each other and had occasionally been in contact on social media, the civil trial heard.
Before the assault, Ms Hand had contacted the fighter, who picked up her and a friend in his car.
McGregor “came on to her”, but she did not want to have sexual intercourse with him as she was on her period, the court heard.
A woman who accused Conor McGregor of raping her has said “justice has been served” after she won her civil case against the Irish mixed martial arts fighter.
Nikita Hand has been awarded €248,603 (£206,000) in damages after a jury at Dublin’s High Court found McGregor assaulted her in a Dublin hotel in 2018.
McGregor, 36, made no comment as he swiftly left court following the decision on Friday evening.
He had previously told the court he had consensual sex with Ms Hand in a penthouse at the Beacon Hotel in December 2018.
Speaking outside court after the decision, an emotional Ms Hand said the weeks of her civil case against the fighter have been a “nightmare” and has impacted not only her life but her daughter’s, friends and loved ones.
“I would like to start off by saying I’m overwhelmed and touched by the support I have received from everybody,” the mother-of-one said.
“It’s something that I’ll never forget for the rest of my life.
“Now that justice has been served, I can now try and move on and look forward to the future with my family and friends and daughter.”
Addressing other victims of sexual assault, Ms Hand continued: “I hope my story is a reminder that no matter how afraid you might be: Speak up, you have a voice and keep on fighting for justice.
“You can stand up for yourself if something happens to you – no matter who the person is – and justice will be served.”
Ms Hand told the court McGregor pinned her to a bed, choked her three times and “brutally raped and battered” her.
The civil court jury was told she was left with extensive injuries, including purple and blue bruising along her hands and wrists, a bloodied scratch to her breast and tenderness to her neck.
But lawyers for the fighter contested the lawsuit and accused her of attempted “extortion”.
They pointed to CCTV footage of Ms Hand arriving at and leaving the hotel with McGregor and a second man, James Lawrence, whom she also accused of sexual assault.
Both McGregor and Lawrence denied any wrongdoing. While Ms Hand won her case against McGregor, she lost her claim against Lawrence.
On Monday, McGregor’s legal team told jurors it did not matter if they did not like or even loathed the famous fighter, urging them to look at the evidence and not his character.
McGregor and Ms Hand knew each other and had occasionally been in contact on social media, the civil trial heard.
Before the assault, Ms Hand had contacted the fighter, who picked up her and a friend in his car.
McGregor “came on to her”, but she did not want to have sexual intercourse with him as she was on her period, the court heard.
Arrest warrants have been issued for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former defence secretary Yoav Gallant and a senior Hamas commander by the International Criminal Court (ICC).
The warrants against the senior Israeli figures are for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity related to the war in Gaza that Israel launched following the 7 October attacks by Hamas.
The prime minister’s office said the warrants against him and Gallant were “anti-semitic” and said Israel “rejects with disgust the absurd and false actions”.
Another warrant was issued for the arrest of Hamas leader Mohammed Diab Ibrahim al Masrifor alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Neither Israel nor the US are members of the ICC. Israel has rejected the court’s jurisdiction and denies committing war crimes in Gaza.
US President Joe Biden described the warrants against Israeli leaders as “outrageous”, adding “whatever the ICC might imply, there is no equivalence – none – between Israel and Hamas”.
Former Israeli prime minister Naftali Bennett said the warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant were a “mark of shame” for the ICC.
The court originally said it was seeking arrest warrants for the three men in May for the alleged crimes and today announced that it had rejected challenges by Israel and issued warrants of arrest.
In its update, the ICC said it found “reasonable grounds to believe” that Netanyahu and Gallant “bear criminal responsibility” for alleged crimes.
These, the court said, include “the war crime of starvation as a method of warfare; and the crimes against humanity of murder, persecution, and other inhumane acts”.
The Board of Deputies of British Jews said the ICC’s decision sent a “terrible message”.
“The court has minimised how Hamas fights – deliberately from within civilian infrastructure and cruelly using Palestinian civilians as human shields, tragically leading to many casualties,” the board said.
“Democratic governments, and people around the world, should consider how they would have responded to an October 7th perpetrated against their country, involving mass murder, rape, and hostage-taking.
“We should all be focused on defeating the Hamas terrorists, liberating the hostages, ensuring that civilians in Gaza receive all necessary aid and working towards a sustainable peace for Israelis and Palestinians to prevent these horrible conflicts in the future.
“The decision of the ICC is counter-productive in all these respects.”
Three arrest warrants have been issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) but the two most significant are those against Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant.
The court in their statement said that they have reasonable grounds to believe that those two men, have been carrying out the war crime of starvation as a method of warfare and the crimes against humanity of murder, persecution and other inhumane acts.
Ever since the arrest warrants were first sought there have been a lot of legal challenges. But the court has rejected all that and has now issued these arrest warrants.
So what does it mean? Well, practically, it would mean that Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant couldn’t travel to any state that is a signatory of the ICC – about 120 countries around the world, including the UK and many European countries.
Were Netanyahu to travel to any of those countries, he should be arrested by the police forces of those countries. And it’ll be very interesting to see what Sir Keir Starmer’s reaction is to this.
But the US, Israel’s closest ally, is not a signatory of the ICC. I think Netanyahu will have support on the other side of the Atlantic.
Also, these ICC arrest warrants don’t always get carried out. We saw President Vladimir Putin, who had an arrest warrant issued for him after the invasion of Ukraine, travel to Mongolia a couple of months ago and nothing was done about that.
But in terms of the reputations of Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant, in terms of that legacy, they are now wanted suspects, wanted to be put on trial for war crimes. And it is a label that will never leave them.
Warrant for Hamas leader
The ICC also said it has issued an arrest warrant for Hamas leader Al Masri, saying it has “reasonable grounds to believe” that he is responsible for crimes against humanity including murder, extermination, torture, rape, as well as war crimes including taking hostages.
Discussing the 7 October attacks, the court said: “In light of the coordinated killings of members of civilians at several separate locations, the Chamber also found that the conduct took place as part of a mass killing of members of the civilian population, and it therefore concluded that there are reasonable grounds to believe that the crime against humanity of extermination was committed.”
In its statement, the ICC said the prosecution was not in a position to determine whether Al Masri is dead or alive, so was issuing the arrest warrant.
The court previously said it was seeking an arrest warrant for Ismail Haniyeh, the leader of Hamas who was subsequently killed in July.