Blinken urges efforts to finalize a truce agreement for Gaza

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken urged on Monday for a final effort to secure a ceasefire in Gaza before President Joe Biden’s term concludes. This call came after a Hamas representative informed Reuters that the group had identified 34 hostages to be released first under a potential truce.

“We are eager to finalize this within the next two weeks, which is the time we have left,” Blinken stated during a news conference in South Korea when asked about the proximity of a ceasefire agreement.

Israel has dispatched a delegation of mid-level officials to Qatar for discussions facilitated by Qatari and Egyptian mediators. Some reports from Arabic media suggested that David Barnea, the head of Mossad, who has been leading the negotiations, might join the talks. The Israeli prime minister’s office has not provided any comments on this matter.

The extent of progress between the two parties remains uncertain, with some indications of movement but little evidence of a change in the critical demands that have hindered a truce for over a year.

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has warned that there would be significant consequences in the Middle East if hostages held by Hamas are not released before his inauguration on January 20, which is now seen in the region as an unofficial deadline for reaching a truce agreement.

Gaza health officials report that nearly 46,000 Palestinians have lost their lives due to Israel’s military actions in Gaza, which commenced following a Hamas incursion into Israeli territory in October 2023, resulting in the deaths of 1,200 individuals and the capture of over 250 hostages, according to Israeli sources.

Over 100 hostages are still believed to be held in Gaza, with Hamas stating that they will not release them without a deal that includes an end to the conflict and the withdrawal of Israeli forces. In response, Israel has declared that it will continue its military operations until Hamas is dismantled as both a military and governing entity, and all hostages are released.

A Hamas representative informed Reuters that the group has reviewed a list of 34 hostages submitted by Israel, who could potentially be released in the first phase of a ceasefire. This list reportedly includes female soldiers, as well as elderly women and minors.

The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu indicated that this list was provided to Qatari mediators as early as July, and so far, Israel has not received any confirmation or feedback from Hamas regarding the status of the hostages listed. “Israel will persist in its relentless efforts to secure the return of all our hostages,” the statement read.

COLD WEATHER CLAIMS INFANT LIFE

Israeli forces have escalated their operations in recent weeks, continuing bombardments throughout the region, which have resulted in at least 48 fatalities and 75 injuries in the last 24 hours, according to the Gaza health ministry. The severe winter conditions have taken a toll on the hundreds of thousands displaced into temporary shelters, with officials reporting that a 35-day-old infant has succumbed to exposure, marking at least the eighth cold-related death in the past two weeks.

Officials at Al-Awda Hospital in Nuseirat, located in the central Gaza Strip, reported that an Israeli airstrike on a school compound housing displaced families injured at least 40 individuals.

Israel’s military asserts that Hamas has been significantly weakened as a cohesive military entity; however, its fighters remain entrenched in the debris of Gaza, which has been devastated into a wasteland due to months of aerial attacks. On Monday, three rockets were launched from Gaza, with one striking a building in the adjacent Israeli city of Sderot, though no casualties were reported, according to Israeli police.

In the Israeli-occupied West Bank, another Palestinian region experiencing heightened violence since the onset of the Gaza conflict, gunmen attacked a car and a bus near the Israeli settlement of Kedumim, resulting in the deaths of three Israelis and injuries to several others.