LiveNewsWatch

Category: Israel-Gaza War

  • U.S. to Host Qatari, Egyptian, Turkish Officials for Gaza Ceasefire Talks

    U.S. to Host Qatari, Egyptian, Turkish Officials for Gaza Ceasefire Talks

    The United States Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, is set to hold talks in Miami, Florida, with senior officials from Qatar, Egypt, and Turkey as efforts continue to advance the next phase of the Gaza ceasefire. This comes even as Israel has repeatedly violated the truce.

    A White House official informed Al Jazeera Arabic on Friday that Witkoff will meet with representatives from the three countries to discuss the future of the agreement aimed at halting what has been described as Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza.

    According to Axios, the meeting scheduled for later on Friday will include Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, and Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty.

    Israel’s public broadcaster reported that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is holding a limited security meeting. He will discuss the next steps for the ceasefire and look at possible scenarios. An Israeli official warned that Israel might launch a new military campaign to disarm Hamas if U.S. President Donald Trump were to disengage from the Gaza process, although this move seems unlikely as Trump aims to maintain calm in the region.

    Ceasefire is Still in Effect – Washington

    Despite Washington’s claims that the ceasefire is still in effect, Israeli attacks have been ongoing and largely uninterrupted. Israel has not fulfilled the terms of the first phase of the ceasefire and continues to block the crucial flow of humanitarian aid into the besieged Palestinian territory.

    Earlier on Friday, Israeli forces conducted airstrikes, artillery shelling, and heavy gunfire across eastern Khan Younis, further escalating violations of the Gaza ceasefire, as reported by an Al Jazeera Arabic correspondent on the ground.

    Israeli attacks targeted areas under Israeli control in southern Gaza City, while shelling also hit Bani Suheila, located east of Khan Younis, inside the so-called “yellow line”—territory from which Israel was required to withdraw under the ceasefire agreement.

    Al-Aqsa TV reported that Israeli artillery fire in eastern Khan Younis killed at least three Palestinians, including a woman. The channel also mentioned that Israeli naval vessels opened fire on fishing boats off the city’s coast.

    In other areas, Israeli warplanes bombed Deir el-Balah in central Gaza and conducted another strike in Gaza City’s Shujayea neighborhood, where plumes of smoke rose from the targeted sites.

    According to an analysis by Al Jazeera, Israeli forces carried out attacks on Gaza on 58 of the past 69 days of the truce, leaving only 11 days without reports of deaths, injuries, or violence.

    In Washington, Trump stated on Thursday that Netanyahu is likely to visit him in Florida during the Christmas holidays, as the U.S. president pushes for the initiation of the agreement’s second phase. “Yes, he will probably visit me in Florida. He wants to meet. We haven’t formally arranged it yet, but he wants to meet me,” Trump told reporters.

    Qatar and Egypt, which are mediating and guaranteeing the truce after a devastating two-year genocide in Gaza, have urged a transition to the second phase of the agreement. This plan includes a full Israeli military withdrawal and the deployment of an international stabilization force (ISF).

    Hamas Seeks an End to Israeli Violations and Calls For a Political Solution

    A senior Hamas official stated that the discussions in Miami should focus on ending Israeli violations of the truce in the Palestinian territories. Basem Naim, a member of Hamas’s political bureau, told the AFP news agency, “Our people expect these talks to result in an agreement that puts an end to ongoing Israeli lawlessness, halts all violations, and compels the occupation to abide by the Sharm El-Sheikh agreement.”

    Naim emphasized that the new talks should facilitate the increased entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza.

    He added that the discussions should concentrate on “the entry of aid, the opening of the Rafah crossing in both directions, and the delivery of everything necessary for repairs and infrastructure rehabilitation.”

    Furthermore, Naim remarked that the talks should also address “the implementation of the remaining elements of the Trump plan in a manner that achieves sustainable stability, launches a comprehensive reconstruction process, and paves the way for a political track that empowers Palestinians to govern themselves, culminating in a fully sovereign and independent state.”

    Qatar’s Prime Minister, Sheikh Mohammed, warned on Wednesday that daily violations of the Gaza ceasefire by Israel threaten the entire agreement. He emphasized the need for urgent progress towards the next phase of the deal aimed at ending Israel’s wartime actions against the besieged Palestinian enclave.

    This appeal came after talks with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Washington. Sheikh Mohammed highlighted that “delays and ceasefire violations endanger the entire process and place mediators in a difficult position.”

    Fragile Peace, Established Occupation

    The ceasefire is very fragile. Palestinians and human rights groups say it is only a ceasefire in name because Israel is still violating the agreement, and the humanitarian situation in Gaza is getting worse.

    Since the ceasefire started on October 10, 2025, Israel has broken the agreement multiple times, causing the deaths of hundreds of Palestinians. Gaza’s Government Media Office reports that Israel committed at least 738 violations between October 10 and December 12. These violations included airstrikes, artillery fire, and direct shootings.

    Israeli forces have shot at civilians 205 times and conducted 37 incursions beyond the “yellow line.” They have bombed or shelled Gaza 358 times, demolished properties 138 times, and detained 43 Palestinians. Furthermore, Israel continues to block critical humanitarian aid while systematically destroying homes and infrastructure.

    Amid these events, the media outlet Israel Hayom quoted an Israeli security official stating that the “yellow line” now marks Israel’s new border inside Gaza. An official said that Israeli forces will not leave until Hamas is disarmed. The army is preparing to stay in the area for a long time.

    The newspaper also reported that Israeli military leaders want to keep control of half of Gaza. This suggests that Israel plans to strengthen its occupation instead of pursuing a real ceasefire.

    To make matters worse, a significant storm that recently struck Gaza has killed at least 13 people, causing torrential rains and strong winds that flooded tents and led to the collapse of damaged buildings.

    Israel’s two-year war has devastated over 80 percent of the structures in Gaza, forcing hundreds of thousands of families to seek refuge in flimsy tents or overcrowded makeshift shelters.

  • ICC Judges Resisted US Sanctions on Israeli War Crimes Cases

    ICC Judges Resisted US Sanctions on Israeli War Crimes Cases

    Judges and prosecutors at the International Criminal Court (ICC) have been cut off from banks, credit card companies, and tech giants like Amazon due to sanctions imposed by the Trump administration in the United States. These sanctions are a response to war crimes investigations involving Israeli and U.S. officials.

    The Associated Press reported on Friday that these U.S. sanctions have had a sweeping and punitive effect on nine ICC staff members, including six judges and the chief prosecutor.

    President Trump introduced new measures earlier this year through an executive order. These measures prevent certain officials from using basic financial services and from doing everyday activities like online shopping and emailing. They also stop these officials from entering the U.S., putting them under the same restrictions as Russian President Vladimir Putin. However, Putin was able to visit Alaska for a summit with Trump in August.

    “Your whole world is restricted,” said Canadian judge Kimberly Prost, one of the ICC officials targeted by the sanctions, in an interview with AP.

    The International Criminal Court (ICC), the world’s permanent war crimes tribunal with 125 member states, was targeted with sanctions in February. The White House stated that the move was in response to what it described as baseless and illegitimate actions against the United States and its close ally, Israel.

    The ICC has issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. The court accused them of committing crimes against humanity and war crimes because of their actions during the ongoing conflict in Gaza.

    Prost, who was named in the latest round of sanctions in August, expressed her frustrations in an interview with the Associated Press. She mentioned that she had lost access to her credit cards, noticed that purchased e-books had vanished from her device, and that her Amazon Alexa had stopped responding.

    “It’s the uncertainty,” Prost said. “These are small annoyances, but they accumulate.”

    She was sanctioned for her vote to allow the ICC to investigate alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Afghanistan, which included actions by U.S. soldiers and intelligence operatives.

    “I’ve dedicated my entire career to criminal justice, and now I find myself on a list alongside those implicated in terrorism and organized crime,” she stated.

    Luz del Carmen Ibanez Carranza, a sanctioned Peruvian judge, stated that the U.S. travel sanctions, which also apply to family members, prevent her daughters from attending conferences in the United States.

    These sanctions impose significant fines and potential prison time on businesses and individuals that provide “financial, material, or technological support” to those sanctioned. As a result, many are withdrawing services from the targeted individuals.

    “You’re never quite sure when your card isn’t working somewhere if it’s just a glitch or if it’s due to the sanctions,” said deputy prosecutor Nazhat Shameem Khan in an interview with the Associated Press.

    Reports of Threats Related to Warrants

    The sanctions are reportedly just one of several measures aimed at exerting pressure on the court regarding arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant.

    In July, the Middle East Eye (MEE) reported that the court’s chief prosecutor, Karim Khan, was warned that both he and the International Criminal Court (ICC) would be “destroyed” if the warrants were not withdrawn.

    This threat allegedly came from Nicholas Kaufman, a British-Israeli defense lawyer at the court with ties to an adviser of Netanyahu. Khan noted that the Israeli leader’s legal adviser claimed he was “authorized” to make him a proposal that would allow the prosecutor to “climb down the tree,” according to the news website.

    In August, Khan was warned by British leader David Cameron that the UK would stop funding the International Criminal Court (ICC) if it charged two people, Netanyahu and Gallant. In May 2024, U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham also warned Khan that he could face consequences if he tried to press charges against them.

    In May, Khan’s office said he would take a break from his job while a UN investigation looked into claims of bad behavior against him. During this time, two other people helped do his work.