Second Stage of WHO’s Polio Vaccination Campaign in Gaza Strip Begins Today
The second stage is starting in the enclave’s south after the first stage in central Gaza was successfully completed, the global health agency said; it reported doling out vaccines to 187,000 children so far (Reuters)
U.S. Prosecutors Charge Hamas Leaders With Terrorism for October 7 Attack
Yahya Sinwar, a leading architect of last October’s strike, and five other Hamas leaders were charged with terrorism and other offenses in an unsealed indictment; the charges were originally filed in February (NYT)
U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland said that they “will not be our last” actions to target Hamas’s operations (DW)
Three of those charged have been killed in recent months (NPR)
Netanyahu Maintains Stance on Cease-Fire Condition After Street Protests
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that he would not bend on a demand that Israel maintain control over a southern Gaza Strip corridor along the Egypt border, speaking in a news conference last night that followed a day of demonstrations; Netanyahu added that if Israel were to withdraw from the area, “there will be enormous diplomatic pressure upon us from the whole world not to return”(NYT)
Protesters renewed calls for Netanyahu to make a cease-fire and hostage deal after the Israeli military’s weekend announcement that it recovered the bodies of six hostages from Gaza (CNN)
Hamas has rejected the idea of continued Israeli control over the corridor, while Netanyahu called it “essential for our existence”(FT)
When asked yesterday if Netanyahu was doing enough to reach a hostage deal in Gaza, U.S. President Joe Biden responded: “No”(Reuters)
Yesterday’s protests also came as the United Kingdom announced it was suspending about 30 of its 350 existing arms export licenses to Israel, citing concerns over the potential use of weapons for violations of international humanitarian law; Israel’s defense minister said he was “deeply disheartened” by the measure (AP)
United States Levies New Sanctions for West Bank Violence
The U.S. Treasury and State Departments announced new sanctions on an Israeli nongovernmental group and individual, with the State Department saying they played a role in violence against civilians in the West Bank; the organization has received material and political support from Israeli government actors in recent years and the Israeli Prime Minister’s office said the country “is seriously concerned” with the announcement (Axios)
Israel Launches Large-Scale Operation in West Bank
Today’s raids and air strikes constituted one of Israel’s largest offensives in months in the West Bank with the purpose of targeting terrorist groups, according to Israel’s foreign minister; at least nine people were reported dead and another eleven injured, Gaza’s Health Ministry said (NYT)
Israel Rescues Hostage in Southern Gaza
Israel’s military announced the rescue of another hostage taken by Hamas on October 7 in a “complex operation” in southern Gaza: it was not immediately known if anyone was injured or killed during the operation (AP)
UN Forced to Pause Main Aid Operations in Gaza Amid Evacuation Order
An Israeli evacuation order on Sunday for part of the central Gaza Strip hosting a UN operations center caused aid operations to shut down, an unnamed senior UN official told press yesterday; the UN agency for Palestinian refugees operates differently and was still able to deliver aid yesterday, but is facing challenges in carrying out the job, a field director said (Reuters)
The temporary pause on main UN operations comes as health workers hope to carry out a polio vaccination campaign (CNN)
Cairo Talks Wrap Up Without a Breakthrough
The ongoing war in the Gaza Strip continues to prompt fears of an even wider conflict between Israel and Iran’s proxies in the region, including Hezbollah; an unnamed U.S. official said working group discussions related to the talks would continue in the coming days (NYT)
UN Confirms Polio Case in Gaza, Warns of Regional Spread
The disease would not “make the distinction between Palestinian and Israeli children,” a UN aid official said; the World Health Organization and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) aim to carry out a vaccination campaign and have called for a humanitarian pause in Gaza to be able to do so (FT)
Israel-Hezbollah Hostilities Intensify as Negotiators Continue Push for Gaza Deal
Israel bombed ten areas of Lebanon overnight in response to rocket strikes yesterday from Iran-backed Lebanese militant group Hezbollah; the Israeli military said today that its strikes targeted military infrastructure (FT)
A separate Israeli drone strike killed an official in a militant group affiliated with the Palestinian faction Fatah who had been living in Lebanon; Fatah controls the West Bank, where tensions and violence have soared since Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack on Israel(Al-Monitor)
This week’s cross-border attacks come as international diplomats try to move forward with an agreement on a cease-fire and hostage release deal between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip (AP)
Yesterday, U.S. President Joe Biden spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about the potential for a cease-fire; sticking points include disagreements over the control of certain transit corridors within Gaza, the Wall Street Journal reported (WSJ)
Israel Recovers Bodies of Six Hostages From Gaza, Kills Hezbollah Commander in Lebanon
Israel’s military announced it recovered the bodies of six hostages in an overnight raid, including one that had been previously presumed to be alive (Times of Israel)
Separately, both Israel and Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah said that an Israeli strike in southern Lebanon killed Hezbollah commander Hussein Ali Hussein Suleiman(Al-Monitor)
Separately, in a speech reviewing his record and endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris, President Joe Biden said that their administration is “working around the clock” to deliver a cease-fire and hostage release deal in the Gaza Strip and end the war; he added that protesters at the convention “have a point,” and “a lot of innocent people are being killed on both sides” (Time)
Blinken Meets With Israeli Leaders as Hamas Claims Tel Aviv Bombing
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said a roughly three-hour discussion with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken today was “positive” and affirmed “Israel’s commitment to the latest American proposal regarding the release of our hostages;” Blinken has called the current push for a cease-fire “probably the best” and “maybe the last” chance to strike a deal and get on a better path toward enduring peace and security in the region (WaPo)
Obstacles to progress on peace still appeared high in recent days, however, with Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad claiming responsibility for a bomb blast near a synagogue in Tel Aviv last night; the man carrying the bomb was killed and a passerby was also injured in yesterday’s explosion (Times of Israel)
Hamas warned that such actions will continue in response to Israeli attacks (BBC)
Blinken said that it was important that “no one” take any steps that could derail cease-fire talks and potentially give way to broadening the war; he will travel on to Egypt tomorrow (AP).
Gaza Cease-Fire Talks Extend Into Second Day
An Israeli delegation is meeting with U.S., Egyptian, and Qatari negotiators in Doha today to discuss the gaps remaining for a potential cease-fire and hostage release deal; while Hamas is not participating in the talks directly, they suggested they were open to weighing new proposals (NYT)
Mediators Hold Gaza Cease-Fire Talks as Death Toll Passes Forty Thousand
U.S., Egyptian, Israeli, and Qatari delegations are meeting today in Doha about a possible cease-fire and hostage release deal in the Israel-Hamas war; Hamas sat out the talks, but said it will reengage if it receives a “clear commitment” from Israel on the latest proposal (WaPo)
Gaza’s health ministry reported the Palestinian death toll in the war passed forty thousand people today. It does not distinguish between civilians and militants in its count(AP)
Over One Hundred Nonprofits Accuse Israel of Weaponizing Aid in Gaza
In an open letter, more than one hundred nonprofit aid groups, including Oxfam, Doctors Without Borders, and CARE, condemned Israel’s aid policies, saying that since Israel’s blockade in March, most of the groups have not been able to deliver “a single truck” of life-saving aid (AP)
Egypt’s efforts to mediate a ceasefire continued, as it hosted a Hamas delegation led by Khalil Al-Hayya (Reuters)
Meanwhile, Israeli tank fire and airstrikes demolished houses in Gaza City and its suburbs, killing eleven people (Reuters)
Gaza’s health ministry also reported that four people died of starvation and malnutrition, bringing the total to 239, including 106 children, since the war began (Reuters)
Separately, Israel’s Finance Minster Bezalel Smotrich approved a new settlement construction in the West Bank that would effectively cut the West Bank into two separate parts; Smotrich said the move “finally buries the idea of a Palestinian state” and that “anyone in the world who tries today to recognize a Palestinian state will receive an answer from [Israel] on the ground” (AP)
Hamas Says It Won’t Attend Tomorrow’s Cease-Fire Talks
U.S., Egyptian, and Qatari mediators are pushing for progress toward a cease-fire and hostage release deal in the new round of meetings (NYT)
Yesterday, U.S. President Joe Biden said he does not expect Iran to carry out an anticipated attack against Israel if a cease-fire is agreed upon; the U.S. State Department also notified Congress of its plans to sell some $20 billion in weapons to Israel over the next several years(FT)
Putin Meets With Palestinian Authority’s Abbas in Moscow
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas are discussing the war in the Gaza Strip (The National)
Today’s meeting comes as the UN Security Council holds an emergency meeting to discuss a strike last week on a school-turned-shelter in Gaza, where the death toll is closing in on 40,000, according to the local health ministry (The National)
U.S. Military Bolsters Mideast Presence Amid Warnings of Iranian Attack
U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin ordered a guided missile submarine to the Middle East and expedited the travel of a carrier strike group equipped with F-35C fighter jets to the region; yesterday, Austin spoke with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant about reinforcing U.S. capabilities to defend Israel as regional tensions escalate (WSJ)
Iran has vowed to retaliate for the July 31 killing of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, which it blames on Israel (NYT)
Meanwhile, Hamas is putting up resistance to any new rounds of cease-fire negotiations; the group said yesterday in response to a U.S.-Egyptian-Qatari proposal for cease-fire talks on Thursday that mediators should submit a plan for implementing a previously agreed upon proposal from last month, “instead of going to more rounds of negotiations or new proposals that provide cover for the occupation’s aggression” (AP)
Israel’s military ordered more evacuations in the southern Gaza Strip yesterday, including parts of an Israeli-declared humanitarian zone from which Israel said rockets had been fired (Al Jazeera)
On Saturday, an air strike on a school-turned-shelter in northern Gaza killed at least eighty Palestinians, according to Gaza health authorities. Israel said the strike was targeting Hamas (Politico)
Leaders of United States, Egypt, Qatar Issue Joint Call for Gaza Cease-Fire Talks
The three leaders called on both Israel and Hamas to “resume urgent discussion” on August 15 to “close all remaining gaps” to reaching a cease-fire and hostage release deal in a joint statement; they are prepared to present a “final bridging proposal” to resolve outstanding issues, they wrote (White House)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel would send a delegation to the August 15 talks, while Hamas did not immediately respond; the push to conclude negotiations comes as the Middle East braces for a potential Iranian retaliation for the July 31 killing of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran (Al Jazeera)
It was not immediately clear who would represent Hamas in the talks after Yahya Sinwar was elevated from Hamas’s military leader to political leader following Haniyeh’s killing; Sinwar, mastermind of the October 7 attacks that triggered the Israel-Hamas war, is believed to be hiding in Gaza (Bloomberg)
The president of France and foreign minister of the Netherlands said today on social media that they endorse the fresh U.S.-Egyptian-Qatari mediation push (AFP,X)
Turkey Files Application to Join Genocide Case Against Israel at International Court of Justice
Hamas Elevates Planner of October 7 Attacks to Top Leadership
Hamas announced that it elevated Yahya Sinwar, the Gaza-based leader of its military wing, to the group’s top leadership position; the move follows the assassination last week of previous political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Iran (AP)
Sinwar was a mastermind of the October 7 attacks on Israel and is known for a general hard-line stance; his appointment has cast new doubts over the fate of a potential deal for a cease-fire and hostage release in the Israel-Hamas war (CNN)
An Israeli military spokesperson said in response to Sinwar’s elevation that the rightful place for Sinwar is “alongside Mohammed Deif and all of the other terrorists who are responsible for October 7,” referring to another Hamas leader that Israel said it killed in July (Reuters)
Sinwar’s appointment “only underscores the fact that it is really on him to decide whether to move forward with a cease-fire,” U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said at a press conference (NYT)
UN Fires Nine Staff Over Potential Involvement in October 7 Hamas Attack
The United Nations announced it fired nine employees from its agency for Palestinian refugees following an internal probe that found they could have been involved in Hamas’s October 7 attack on Israel; the United Nations did not give details of the evidence that led to the decision (AP)
Investigators found “insufficient” evidence to support Israel’s charges against another nine staffers and “no evidence” against one, a UN spokesperson said (WaPo)
Israel’s January statement that some UN staffers had been involved in the attack led several donor countries to suspend funding to the agency; all but the United States have since resumed support (Bloomberg)
Biden Urges Cease-Fire Deal in Call With Netanyahu
President Biden told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu yesterday to move “now” on a cease-fire deal in Gaza, Biden said to reporters; their call weighed rising tensions across the Middle East after the killing of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran earlier this week (Bloomberg)
Biden pledged to support Israel amid threats of reprisal from Iran and its allied militias and stressed the importance of de-escalation across the region, the readout of his call said (White House)
Meanwhile, flight data show that some commercial airlines appear to be avoiding airspace above Mideast countries such as Lebanon, Iran, and Israel at a time of rising regional tensions; over the past few days, carriers including Air India, Delta, Lufthansa, and United Airlines have suspended flights to Tel Aviv (Reuters)
Israeli Forces Say Hamas Military Leader Deif Was Killed in July 13 Strike
The military said it obtained intelligence today confirming that Mohammed Deif died in the strike last month in the Gaza Strip; Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said that the confirmation was a “big step” toward eradicating Hamas (Times of Israel)
Deif is believed to have orchestrated Hamas’s October 7 attack on Israel with Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, who remains at large (FT)
Killing of Hamas’s Political Leader in Tehran Spurs Fears of Broader Conflict
Hamas accused Israel of the overnight assassination of its political leader, Ismail Haniyeh, in Tehran, with the group’s military wing warning that his death would have major repercussions for the entire region and Iran vowing to retaliate (FT). Israel did not claim responsibility for Haniyeh’s assassination, which came hours after it said it had struck a senior Hezbollah military leader in Beirut; together, the events have fueled fears of further regional escalation between Israel and Iran-backed forces (NYT)
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said today that Washington was not aware of or involved in the attack on Haniyeh, who was Hamas’s lead negotiator in ongoing talks with Israel over a potential cease-fire and hostage release deal in Gaza; in a televised interview, Blinken said “the best way to bring the temperature down everywhere is through the cease-fire in Gaza” (WaPo)
Qatar, which had been playing a mediating role in those talks, called the killing a “heinous crime and dangerous escalation” (AFP)
Haniyeh had been living in exile in Qatar but often traveled to his residence in Iran (AP)