Trump wants Gaza ceasefire before inauguration: Report
President-elect Donald Trump wants to secure a ceasefire and captives deal in Gaza before he takes office, according to US Senator Lindsey Graham.
Graham, who was in Israel this week, told US-based media outlet Axios that Trump was “more determined than ever to release the hostages and supports a ceasefire that includes a hostage deal”.
“He wants to see it happening now,” Graham said. “I want people in Israel and in the region to know that Trump is focused on the hostages issue. He wants the killing to stop and the fighting to end.”
Graham said Trump was seeking a ceasefire as a first step before he can focus on goals such as Israel-Saudi normalisation and a regional military alliance against Iran.
Hamas accuses Israel of using internationally prohibited weapons in northern Gaza
Hamas has demanded the formation of an international committee to investigate the use of internationally prohibited weapons by the Israeli army in the northern Gaza Strip, according to the group’s statement cited by our colleagues at Al Jazeera Arabic.
The group said it collected “horrific testimonies” from doctors and residents in the besieged territory who recounted “the evaporation of bodies” after Israeli attacks there.
The accounts “strongly indicate” that Israel is using “international prohibited weapons during the brutal extermination campaign that has been ongoing for 53 days in the northern Gaza Strip”, the statement said.
Hamas officials in Egypt for ceasefire talks
A Hamas delegation has arrived in Cairo to discuss proposals for a ceasefire in Gaza, following talks earlier this week between Egyptian and Israeli negotiators. Unnamed sources told The National newspaper the Hamas delegation is led by Khalil al-Hayah, Zaher Jabareen, and Moussa Marzouq.
The proposal is thought to include a 20-to-30-day truce. During that time, Hamas would try and identify the location of the estimated 100 captives it’s holding. If a ceasefire is reached, the two sides would exchange hostages for Palestinian prisoners.
While it remains uncertain whether Hamas and Israel will accept the plan, Egyptian officials want to build on the momentum from Tuesday’s ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah.
Egypt, Qatar and the United States have been trying for almost a year, without success, to broker a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.
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