Qatar Says Current Gaza Ceasefire Proposal Is Closer in Positions of Both Sides

Hana Abdelrahaman al-Rai, a four-year-old child suffering from malnutrition and displaced from Gaza City's eastern suburb of Shujaiya, reacts as she is carried inside a tent in Zawayda in the central Gaza Strip on June 4, 2024. (AFP)
Hana Abdelrahaman al-Rai, a four-year-old child suffering from malnutrition and displaced from Gaza City's eastern suburb of Shujaiya, reacts as she is carried inside a tent in Zawayda in the central Gaza Strip on June 4, 2024. (AFP)
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Qatar Says Current Gaza Ceasefire Proposal Is Closer in Positions of Both Sides

Hana Abdelrahaman al-Rai, a four-year-old child suffering from malnutrition and displaced from Gaza City's eastern suburb of Shujaiya, reacts as she is carried inside a tent in Zawayda in the central Gaza Strip on June 4, 2024. (AFP)
Hana Abdelrahaman al-Rai, a four-year-old child suffering from malnutrition and displaced from Gaza City's eastern suburb of Shujaiya, reacts as she is carried inside a tent in Zawayda in the central Gaza Strip on June 4, 2024. (AFP)

Qatar said on Tuesday it delivered an Israeli proposal to Hamas that reflected the positions stated by US President Joe Biden, adding that the paper was now much closer to the positions of both sides.

Qatar, which has been mediating on Gaza between Israel and Hamas, also stressed that there should be a clear position from both parties to reach a ceasefire deal, its foreign ministry spokesperson said in a press briefing.

"We are waiting for a clear Israeli position that represents the entire government in response to the US's Gaza proposal," Majed Al-Ansari added.

Biden on Friday laid out a three-phase ceasefire proposal from Israel to Palestinian group Hamas to end the war in Gaza that has killed tens of thousands and caused a humanitarian crisis.

The offer calls for a ceasefire, the release of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners, and the reconstruction of Gaza.

"The ceasefire deal should immediately end the long suffering of all people in Gaza and the hostages and their families and provide a roadmap for a permanent ceasefire and an end to the crisis", al-Ansari said.

Qatar said that it was still waiting to reach language that was agreed by both parties.

"We are now using our best efforts to finalize an agreement," al-Ansari added.



Israeli Strikes Kill Three People in Gaza, Medics Say

The sun sets over the ruins of the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood of Gaza City on October 31, 2026. (AFP)
The sun sets over the ruins of the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood of Gaza City on October 31, 2026. (AFP)
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Israeli Strikes Kill Three People in Gaza, Medics Say

The sun sets over the ruins of the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood of Gaza City on October 31, 2026. (AFP)
The sun sets over the ruins of the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood of Gaza City on October 31, 2026. (AFP)

Israeli strikes ‌killed at least three Palestinians and wounded several others in the Gaza Strip on Monday, the territory's health officials said.

Medics said two people were killed and six others wounded in two separate airstrikes in Khan Younis, south of the enclave, while a third person was killed in an Israeli airstrike in the town of Al-Mussadar.

The Israeli military didn't immediately ‌comment on ‌any of the attacks.

Israel, which says ‌the ⁠Hamas group ⁠has been rearming and launching attacks in violation of a year-old ceasefire, has stepped up strikes on the group in recent weeks.

Hamas has denied trying to carry out attacks or rebuild its arsenal and accuses Israel of ⁠undermining the Gaza peace deal.

Last year's ‌US-brokered ceasefire calls ‌for eventual reconstruction of the territory. But little progress ‌has been made as negotiators have failed ‌to agree on terms for Hamas to disarm or Israel to withdraw its troops, who control about two-thirds of the territory where they have ordered ‌residents out.

Nearly all of the more than 2 million residents live in ⁠the remaining ⁠third of the enclave among war ruins, mostly in makeshift tents and damaged buildings, still under effective control of Hamas.

At least 1,580 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli attacks in Gaza since the ceasefire, according to the territory's health officials, while Israel says four soldiers have been killed.

Palestinian authorities say more than 74,000 people have been killed in Israel's assault on Gaza, launched after Hamas-led fighters killed about 1,200 people in southern Israel on October 7, 2023.


Syrian Intelligence Thwarts Terrorist Plot Targeting Homs Refinery

A view of the Homs refinery. (SANA)
A view of the Homs refinery. (SANA)
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Syrian Intelligence Thwarts Terrorist Plot Targeting Homs Refinery

A view of the Homs refinery. (SANA)
A view of the Homs refinery. (SANA)

A source in Syria’s intelligence revealed to SANA on Sunday that a terrorist plot targeting the Homs refinery in central Syria has been thwarted.

The Homs refinery, along with the Baniyas refinery, plays a crucial role in securing petroleum derivatives for the domestic market. Last October, atmospheric distillation unit "10" was rehabilitated and maintained, with a design capacity of one million tons of crude oil annually. This boosts the refinery's capacity to produce petroleum derivatives and supports the availability of diesel, fuel oil, and kerosene in the local market.

Authorities did not reveal who was behind the plot.

The current refinery comprises four production units based on atmospheric distillation, alongside a naphtha upgrading project to produce high-octane gasoline that meets domestic market needs.

Some units are currently operational, while maintenance and commissioning work are being finalized on two other units in preparation for launch. This will bring the refinery's operational capacity to approximately 60,000 to 70,000 barrels per day of petroleum derivatives.

Established in 1959, the Homs Refinery General Company is one of the oldest oil facilities in Syria, though its efficiency has declined over time. Yousef Qablawi, CEO of the Syrian Petroleum Company, said last year that the company is currently working on constructing a new refinery 51 kilometers away from the city of Homs.


Syria Arrests Two ISIS Militants Involved in Assassinations

A member of the security forces walks through a checkpoint operated by Syria's Interior Ministry on the outskirts of Sawara Sughra, in the northern countryside of Sweida, Syria, September 15, 2026. REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi
A member of the security forces walks through a checkpoint operated by Syria's Interior Ministry on the outskirts of Sawara Sughra, in the northern countryside of Sweida, Syria, September 15, 2026. REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi
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Syria Arrests Two ISIS Militants Involved in Assassinations

A member of the security forces walks through a checkpoint operated by Syria's Interior Ministry on the outskirts of Sawara Sughra, in the northern countryside of Sweida, Syria, September 15, 2026. REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi
A member of the security forces walks through a checkpoint operated by Syria's Interior Ministry on the outskirts of Sawara Sughra, in the northern countryside of Sweida, Syria, September 15, 2026. REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi

Syrian authorities said on Sunday they arrested two ISIS members in the east of the country, blaming them for targeted killings including that of a defense ministry official.

In a statement, the internal security forces announced the arrest of "two individuals following close intelligence surveillance" in Deir Ezzor.

They are accused of "carrying out a series of assassinations in the governorate, the latest of which was targeting Ministry of Defense member Ibrahim al-Jassem" in the city of Mayadin.

Syrian authorities blamed the group for a bombing in Damascus while French President Emmanuel Macron was visiting the country in July, and said they had dismantled the cell responsible.

According to a report presented to the United Nations Security Council that same month, the group counts some 3,000 combatants in Syria.