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Kurdistan President Offers Condolences Over Death of French Soldier in Iraq

President Nechirvan Barzani. (Presidency of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq)
President Nechirvan Barzani. (Presidency of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq)
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Kurdistan President Offers Condolences Over Death of French Soldier in Iraq

President Nechirvan Barzani. (Presidency of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq)
President Nechirvan Barzani. (Presidency of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq)

Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani extended on Saturday his condolences to the family of a French soldier who died in a car accident in Iraq.

“I offer my deepest condolences to his family, to President Emmanuel Macron, and to the people and government of France at this difficult time. May God Almighty bestow His mercy upon him and grant everyone comfort and patience. I wish his colleague who was injured in the same accident a speedy recovery.”

“The people of Kurdistan appreciate the support and assistance of the French military within the framework of the International Coalition Forces Against ISIS, who continue to provide support and assistance to Iraq and the Kurdistan Region for the eradication of terrorism,” said Barzani.

Sergeant Baptiste Gauchot was killed in a road accident in Iraq, where he was “taking part in a training mission for the Iraqi armed forces,” Macron said on Friday.

Gauchot “was very seriously wounded when his vehicle went off the road,” France’s armed forces ministry said.

He received emergency surgery at Erbil hospital but died from his injuries, while a soldier he was with at the time is being treated in a Baghdad military hospital, it added.

In 2021, Macron stressed that “no matter what choices the Americans make, we will maintain our presence in Iraq to fight against terrorism.”

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Israel Keeps Up Gaza Bombardment as Ceasefire Talks Intensify

Smoke rises following an explosion in the Gaza Strip as seen from southern Israel, Wednesday, Dec.18, 2024. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
Smoke rises following an explosion in the Gaza Strip as seen from southern Israel, Wednesday, Dec.18, 2024. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
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Israel Keeps Up Gaza Bombardment as Ceasefire Talks Intensify

Smoke rises following an explosion in the Gaza Strip as seen from southern Israel, Wednesday, Dec.18, 2024. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
Smoke rises following an explosion in the Gaza Strip as seen from southern Israel, Wednesday, Dec.18, 2024. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

US and Arab mediators are working round-the-clock to hammer out a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas, sources close to the talks said, while in the Gaza Strip medics said Israeli strikes had killed 13 Palestinians on Thursday.
The mediators, at talks in Egypt and Qatar, seek to forge a deal to pause the 14-month-old war in the Hamas-ruled enclave that would include a release of hostages seized from Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, along with Palestinian prisoners held by Israel, Reuters said.
Mediators had managed to narrow some gaps on previous sticking points but differences remained, the sources said.
In Gaza, medics said at least 13 Palestinians were killed overnight in separate Israeli airstrikes, including on two houses in Gaza City and a central camp.
Residents of Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip, where the army has operated since October, said forces blew up clusters of houses overnight.
"The longer those talks last, the more destruction and death takes place in Gaza. Jabalia, Beit Hanoun, and Beit Lahiya are being wiped out, Rafah too," said Adel, 60, a resident of Jabalia, who is now displaced in Gaza City.
Palestinians accuse Israel of ethnic cleansing in those areas by depopulating residents to create buffer zones. Israel denies this and says its campaign aims to wipe out Hamas, a militant group, and to prevent it from regrouping.
Israel accuses Hamas of exploiting civilian infrastructure and the population as a human shield for its activities. Hamas denies it and accuses Israel of trying to justify the indiscriminate killing of Palestinian civilians.
PHASED OR COMPREHENSIVE?
Sources close to the mediation efforts said Hamas had pushed for a one-package deal but Israel wanted a phased one. Talks are focused on a first-phase release of hostages, dead or alive, as well as a number of Palestinians jailed by Israel.
On Tuesday, the sides discussed the numbers and categories of those to be released, but things have yet to be finalized, said a source who spoke anonymously because of the sensitivity of the talks.
The source said one issue was Israel's demand to retain the right to act against any possible military threat from Gaza and the stationing of Israeli forces during phases of the deal.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said on Tuesday Israel will have security control over Gaza with full freedom of action after defeating Hamas in the enclave.
Israel launched its air and ground assault on Gaza after Hamas-led fighters attacked Israeli communities 14 months ago, killing 1,200 people and taking over 250 hostages back to Gaza, according to Israeli tallies.
Israel says about 100 hostages are still being held, but it is unclear how many are alive.
Israel's campaign has killed more than 45,000 Palestinians, displaced most of the 2.3 million population and reduced much of the coastal enclave to ruins.
On Thursday, Human Rights Watch said Israel had killed thousands of Palestinians in Gaza by denying them clean water which it says legally amounts to acts of genocide and extermination.
Israel's foreign ministry accused the rights group of lying, writing on X that Israel had facilitated the continuous flow of water and humanitarian aid into Gaza since the start of the war despite constant attacks by Hamas.