Israel says it is stopping all goods and supplies into Gaza.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office claimed Hamas was refusing to “accept the Witkoff outline for continuing the talks, which Israel agreed to”.
Under a plan put forward by US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, the first phase of the ceasefire deal would continue through Ramadan and Passover, or until 20 April.
Image: Surrounded by the rubble of destroyed homes and buildings, Palestinians gather to break their fast on the first day of Ramadan in Rafah in the Gaza Strip. Pic: AP
Image: A tent camp for displaced Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. Pic: AP
Israel said in a statement that Mr Netanyahu “decided that starting this morning, all entry of goods and supplies into the Gaza Strip would cease”.
It added: “Israel will not allow a ceasefire without the release of our hostages.
“If Hamas continues its refusal, there will be further consequences.”
Israeli’s foreign minister said the country’s commitment to deliver goods was “for the first phase” and that “has lapsed”.
Gideon Saar added that Israel is ready for the second phase of the agreement but “not for free”.
Ceasefire could be in final hours if mediators can’t broker compromise
Israel and Hamas say they want the same thing: an extension to the current ceasefire. How that happens is where they differ.
Israel has accepted a US proposal to extend it by six weeks, covering Ramadan and Passover. Half of the remaining hostages would be released at the beginning and the remaining hostages at the end of those six weeks, if an end to the war can be agreed upon.
It’s a different route to the same place as the existing agreement that works in three phases.
Hamas is insisting Israel stick to the internationally mediated ceasefire signed only a month and a half ago, and therefore move to phase two.
That would mean the full withdrawal of the IDF. Something Benjamin Netanyahu is not ready to commit to, yet.
It would also mean the removal of Hamas from power. Are they actually willing to take that step? Israel obviously doesn’t think so.
Critics of Mr Netanyahu believe he is trying to “shrink” the hostage problem before returning to fighting. The US proposal would do just that.
Although some of Mr Netanyahu’s political allies are urging him to resume fighting now, the Israeli prime minister will probably think it’s too soon.
But if the mediators can’t broker a compromise, and quickly, the ceasefire could be in its final hours.
Hamas called Israel’s decision a “cheap extortion, a war crime and a blatant attack on the [ceasefire] agreement”.
The militant group said the move “affects” the peace process, and “complicates matters and affects the negotiation process, and Hamas doesn’t respond to pressures”.
Egypt – a key mediator with the group – accused Israel of using “starvation as a weapon”.
Both sides stopped short of saying the ceasefire had ended.
Image: Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff.
File pic: Reuters/Evelyn Hockstein/Pool
The holy month of Ramadan started on Friday and is usually between 29 and 30 days. Pictures emerged from Gaza of Palestinians celebrating among the rubble.
The Jewish holiday of Passover is shorter, but this year finishes on Sunday 20 April.
The first phase of the previously agreed ceasefire expired on Saturday.
Phase one halted 15 months of fighting and saw the release of 33 Israeli hostages held in Gaza and five Thai nationals, in exchange for around 2,000 Palestinian prisoners and detainees.
The extension would push back phase two of the ceasefire, which was intended to introduce talks to bring about a permanent end to the war.
Hamas said earlier on Saturday the group rejected Israel’s “formulation” of extending the first phase of the ceasefire in Gaza, but did not explicitly mention Mr Witkoff’s plan.
Both sides have previously traded accusations that the other has violated the fragile ceasefire.
Meanwhile, talks on the long-term future of Gaza are yet to seriously materialise after the UN said it would take decades to rebuild the enclave.
Image: Palestinians gather among the rubble for iftar, the fast-breaking meal, on the first day of Ramadan in Rafah, in the south of the enclave. Pic: AP
Pic: AP/Abdel Kareem Hana
Israeli statement
A statement from the Israeli prime minister’s office originally published in Hebrew said that on the first day of the proposed extension, half of the hostages and bodies of the dead would be released.
It added that at the end, if an agreement on a permanent ceasefire was reached, the remaining hostages and bodies would also be released.
The statement added: “Witkoff proposed the outline for extending the ceasefire after he was impressed that at this stage there was no possibility of bridging the positions of the parties to end the war, and that additional time was needed for talks on a permanent ceasefire.”
It went on to add that Israel could return to fighting “after the 42nd day if it feels that the negotiations are ineffective”, pointing out that this was supported by the Trump administration.
It isn’t clear what dates these days correspond to.
Contention over the extension
Two Palestinian officials familiar with negotiations told Reuters that Israel refused to enter phase two of the agreement or start negotiations about it.
Instead, they said that Israel requested an extension of the first phase, conditioned on the handover of a number of hostages and bodies for each week of the extension.
Hamas, however, Reuters reported, rejected this and insisted on sticking to the original agreement and entering into the second phase, as was previously agreed.
Before the most recent statement, an Egyptian official involved in the ceasefire talks said Hamas, Qatar and Egypt wanted to continue with the existing ceasefire deal, according to The Associated Press.
It added that they rejected Israel’s proposal to extend the ceasefire for four weeks, with hostage releases, without officially entering the second phase.
Worldwide stock markets have plummeted for the second day running as the fallout from Donald Trump’s global tariffs continues.
While European and Asian markets suffered notable falls, American indexes were the worst hit, with Wall Street closing to a sea of red on Friday following Thursday’s rout – the worst day in US markets since the COVID-19 pandemic.
All three of the US’s major indexes were down by more than 5% at market close; The Dow Jones Industrial Average plummeted 5.5%, the S&P 500 was 5.97% lower, and the Nasdaq Composite slipped 5.82%.
The Nasdaq was also 22% below its record-high set in December, which indicates a bear market.
Ever since the US president announced the tariffs on Wednesday evening, analysts estimate that around $4.9trn (£3.8trn) has been wiped off the value of the global stock market.
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Mr Trump has remained unapologetic as the markets struggle, posting in all-caps on Truth Social before the markets closed that “only the weak will fail”.
The UK’s leading stock market, the FTSE 100, also suffered its worst daily drop in more than five years, closing 4.95% down, a level not seen since March 2020.
And the Japanese exchange Nikkei 225 dropped by 2.75% at end of trading, down 20% from its recent peak in July last year.
Image: US indexes had the worst day of trading since the COVID-19 pandemic. Pic: Reuters
Trump holds trade deal talks – reports
It comes as a source told CNN that Mr Trump has been in discussions with Vietnamese, Indianand Israelirepresentatives to negotiate bespoke trade deals that could alleviate proposed tariffs on those countries before a deadline next week.
The source told the US broadcaster the talks were being held in advance of the reciprocal levies going into effect next week.
Vietnam faced one of the highest reciprocal tariffs announced by the US president this week, with 46% rates on imports. Israeli imports face a 17% rate, and Indian goods will be subject to 26% tariffs.
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China – hit with 34% tariffs on imported goods – has also announced it will issue its own levy of the same rate on US imports.
Mr Trump said China “played it wrong” and “panicked – the one thing they cannot afford to do” in another all-caps Truth Social post earlier on Friday.
Later, on Air Force One, the US president told reporters that “the beauty” of the tariffs is that they allow for negotiations, referencing talks with Chinese company ByteDance on the sale of social media app TikTok.
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6:50
Tariffs: Xi hits back at Trump
He said: “We have a situation with TikTok where China will probably say, ‘We’ll approve a deal, but will you do something on the tariffs?’
“The tariffs give us great power to negotiate. They always have.”
Global financial markets gave a clear vote of no-confidence in President Trump’s economic policy.
The damage it will do is obvious: costs for companies will rise, hitting their earnings.
The consequences will ripple throughout the global economy, with economists now raising their expectations for a recession, not only in the US, but across the world.
The court ruled to uphold the impeachment saying the conservative leader “violated his duty as commander-in-chief by mobilising troops” when he declared martial law.
The president was also said to have taken actions “beyond the powers provided in the constitution”.
Image: Demonstrators stayed overnight near the constitutional court. Pic: AP
Supporters and opponents of the president gathered in their thousands in central Seoul as they awaited the ruling.
The 64-year-old shocked MPs, the public and international allies in early December when he declared martial law, meaning all existing laws regarding civilians were suspended in place of military law.
Image: The court was under heavy police security guard ahead of the announcement. Pic: AP
After suddenly declaring martial law, Mr Yoon sent hundreds of soldiers and police officers to the National Assembly.
He has argued that he sought to maintain order, but some senior military and police officers sent there have told hearings and investigators that Mr Yoon ordered them to drag out politicians to prevent an assembly vote on his decree.
His presidential powers were suspended when the opposition-dominated assembly voted to impeach him on 14 December, accusing him of rebellion.
The unanimous verdict to uphold parliament’s impeachment and remove Mr Yoon from office required the support of at least six of the court’s eight justices.
South Korea must hold a national election within two months to find a new leader.
Lee Jae-myung, leader of the main liberal opposition Democratic Party, is the early favourite to become the country’s next president, according to surveys.