US President Biden holds out the prospect of an early agreement on the release of hostages. Hamas leader Haniyeh speaks of a possible ceasefire.
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Hamas terrorists crossed the border into Israel on October 7 and carried out massacres. Since then, Israel has been attacking targets in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip. This live blog informs you about the current developments:
Hezbollah attacks targets in Israel
8:43 p.m.: After the deaths of at least two journalists in an Israeli airstrike in Lebanon, the Lebanese Shiite militia Hezbollah has again shelled targets in the border region. Hezbollah says its more than five attacks were intended to “avenge” the killing of two TV journalists. The militias attacked a military post in northern Israel with Katyusha-type rockets and “hit it directly.” They also fired rockets at a factory belonging to the Israeli arms company Rafael.
Israel’s army says it has attacked several suspicious targets. The army also attacked and hit an anti-tank weapon near the common border. Israel’s armed forces are attacking “Hezbollah terrorist targets in Lebanon.”
Journalists killed in Lebanon
8.40 p.m.: According to local media, at least two journalists were killed in an Israeli airstrike in southern Lebanon. The pro-Iranian television channel Al-Majadin confirmed that a reporter and a photographer from the channel were killed. The crew was “directly and specifically attacked,” says the station’s director.
A security source tells the German Press Agency that a civilian was also killed in the attack. The Israeli army says it was acting against a Hezbollah threat in the area. Staying in the area where there is constant shelling is dangerous. The specific incident is currently being investigated.
Two Doctors Without Borders doctors killed in hospital attacks
8:33 p.m.: Two doctors from the aid organization Doctors Without Borders died in an attack on a hospital in the Gaza Strip. Ahmad Al-Sahar and Mahmoud Abu Nujaila were killed along with a colleague, Siad Al-Tatari, in the Al-Auda clinic, reports the organization in Geneva. The clinic is one of the last still functioning in the northern part of the Gaza Strip. A bullet hit the third and fourth floors. Other staff were injured, some seriously.
A World Health Organization (WHO) worker was also killed, along with her six-month-old baby, her husband and two brothers. No further information is known about how the family died and who was responsible.
Elimination of Hamas will not be affected by deal
8:01 p.m.: The Israeli army’s stated goal of eliminating Hamas would not be weakened by a possible hostage deal, says Admiral Daniel Hagari, “Times of Israel”. A ceasefire may not be included in this either, according to Hagari.
“The goal of repatriating the hostages is significant. Even if it reduces some other things, we know how to restore our operational successes,” says Hagari. If a deal is reached, the families of the hostages would be notified first and then the hostages, it is said.
Hamas leader: Still waiting for Israel’s response on possible agreement
7:50 p.m.: Hamas is still waiting for Israel to decide on a possible agreement on a ceasefire and the exchange of hostages for Palestinian prisoners, according to a senior leader. “We are still waiting for the occupiers’ response with a view to agreeing on a humanitarian ceasefire,” said Hamas leader Chalil al-Haja in Beirut. During the negotiations, Hamas had already sent its response to the “brothers” in Egypt and Qatar, who were now making “significant efforts” to reach an agreement. There are now “decisive moments” ahead.
In the Gaza war, an agreement to exchange Hamas hostages for prisoners in Israel is taking more concrete form. According to Hamas, an agreement also calls for a five-day break in fighting and the entry of hundreds of trucks carrying aid supplies into the Gaza Strip. Israel still has to agree to the deal. Qatar and Egypt are acting as mediators because of their relations with the Islamist Palestinian organization.