Israel Says It Will Continue Talks with Mediators on Potential Hamas Ceasefire

 Palestinians view the damage after Israeli forces withdrew from the area around Kamal Adwan hospital, amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict, in Jabalia, in the northern Gaza Strip October 26, 2024. (Reuters)
Palestinians view the damage after Israeli forces withdrew from the area around Kamal Adwan hospital, amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict, in Jabalia, in the northern Gaza Strip October 26, 2024. (Reuters)
TT

Israel Says It Will Continue Talks with Mediators on Potential Hamas Ceasefire

 Palestinians view the damage after Israeli forces withdrew from the area around Kamal Adwan hospital, amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict, in Jabalia, in the northern Gaza Strip October 26, 2024. (Reuters)
Palestinians view the damage after Israeli forces withdrew from the area around Kamal Adwan hospital, amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict, in Jabalia, in the northern Gaza Strip October 26, 2024. (Reuters)

Israel’s government said it would continue its discussion with international mediators about a potential ceasefire deal in its war with Hamas, as the head of the Mossad spy agency returned from Qatar on Monday after taking part in the latest round of in-person talks.

David Barnea met with the head of the CIA, Bill Burns, and the Prime Minister of Qatar in Doha, Israel’s prime minister’s office said in a brief statement.

“In the coming days, the discussions between the mediators and with Hamas will continue to examine the feasibility of talks and the continuation of attempts to advance a deal,” the statement said.

Washington and Qatar have been key mediators in the stalled negotiations between Israel and Hamas.

The new round of talks was announced by the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken last week.

Neither Hamas nor Israel has shown any sign of softening their demands since the negotiations sputtered to a halt over the summer.



Lebanon Says Number Killed in Israel-Hezbollah Conflict Surpasses 2,700 in a Year

A damaged building after an Israeli airstrike, in Tyre, Lebanon, 28 October 2024. (EPA)
A damaged building after an Israeli airstrike, in Tyre, Lebanon, 28 October 2024. (EPA)
TT

Lebanon Says Number Killed in Israel-Hezbollah Conflict Surpasses 2,700 in a Year

A damaged building after an Israeli airstrike, in Tyre, Lebanon, 28 October 2024. (EPA)
A damaged building after an Israeli airstrike, in Tyre, Lebanon, 28 October 2024. (EPA)

Lebanon’s Health Ministry reported Monday that 38 people were killed and 124 wounded over the past 24 hours, bringing the total toll from a year of conflict between Hezbollah and Israel to 2,710 killed and 12,592 wounded. One quarter of those killed were women and children.

The highest number of casualties has been recorded in the South province, followed by Nabatiyeh, the Baalbek region and Bekaa Valley.

The health ministry reported that over the past year, 2,041 men have been killed and 9,881 wounded. Women account for 532 fatalities and 2,351 injuries, while 157 children have been killed and 1,129 injured.

In the health care sector, the ministry said that 168 health workers have been killed, 232 wounded and 239 medical vehicles damaged since Oct. 8. Additionally, 79 medical and ambulatory centers have been affected, along with 38 hospitals.

On Monday, intense airstrikes have continued to pummel various villages across South Lebanon and the Bekaa Valley. In one case, two Israeli strikes killed six members of a single family in the town of Bodai in the Baalbek province, according to the state-run National News Agency.