Gaza death toll surpasses 40,000 with crunch ceasefire talks underway

The liveblog has now ended and will be back at 9am BST. You can read more of The New Arab's coverage of Israel's war on Gaza here.

Attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinian civilians in the occupied West Bank are unacceptable and must stop, the White House said on Thursday.

"Israeli authorities must take measures to protect all communities from harm, this includes intervening to stop such violence, and holding all perpetrators of such violence to account," a White House National Security Council spokesperson said in a statement. 

(Reuters)

US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced that the US has destroyed a Houthi ground control station in an announcement on X. 

"It was determined this ground control station presented a clear and imminent threat to U.S. and coalition forces, and merchant vessels in the region," the statement read.

August 15 U.S. Central Command Update

In the past 24 hours, U.S. Central Command (USCENTCOM) forces successfully destroyed one Iranian-backed Houthi ground control station in a Houthi-controlled area of Yemen.

It was determined this ground control station presented a clear and… pic.twitter.com/rEswsTplAY

— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) August 16, 2024

An Israeli airstrike on Gaza City has killed two people, according to Al Jazeera citing local media reports. It added that others were wounded in the attack that targeted the Daraj neighbourhood of the city.

Qatar has announced that talks aimed at ending the war in Gaza are due to continue tomorrow.

In a statement carried by Qatar News Agency Dr. Majed bin Mohammed Al-Ansari, Qatar's Foreign Minister, said that mediators from Egypt, Qatar and the US are "resolute in their commitment to move forward in their endeavors to reach a ceasefire in the Strip that would facilitate the release of hostages and enable the entry of the largest possible amount of humanitarian aid into Gaza."

Additionally, the statement said that it sought a ceasefire based on the principles set out by President Biden on 31 May.

Spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs: The Mediators' Meeting in Doha to End the War on #Gaza will Resume Friday. #QNA#Qatarhttps://t.co/nVldsmswxR pic.twitter.com/WAURKBiTEk

— Qatar News Agency (@QNAEnglish) August 15, 2024

The Executive Director of UNICEF, Catherine Russell, has called for a ceasefire in Gaza and for the release of Israeli hostages held in the enclave by Hamas in a post on X.

"How many more children will be killed in Gaza or undergo indescribable suffering before the nightmare ends?" she asked in her post, adding "Heartbreaking to hear that newborn twins and their mother were among the latest casualties."

"It's past time for a ceasefire, and the unconditional release of hostages," she further said.

How many more children will be killed in Gaza or undergo indescribable suffering before the nightmare ends?

Heartbreaking to hear that newborn twins and their mother were among the latest casualties.

It's past time for a ceasefire, and the unconditional release of hostages. pic.twitter.com/gJf3Bls29O

— Catherine Russell (@unicefchief) August 15, 2024

 Mediators from Qatar, Egypt and the United States had concluded a "constructive" day of discussions on a potential Gaza ceasefire deal on Thursday and talks will resume on Friday, a US official said.

(Reuters)

An Israeli government source speaking with Haaretz told the publication that talks in Doha were going well, and that they were expected to resume tomorrow and for progress to be made in the next 48-hours. 

The publication added that Qatar's Prime Minister spoke with the Iranian Foreign Minister following the developments.

Israeli government figures have condemned the killing of a Palestinian and wounding of at least 11 others by Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank.

Israel's President Isaac Herzog said on X that the attack "harms the law-abiding settler population and the settlement as a whole." 

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that the perpetrators would be arrested and sentenced.

Israeli settlements are illegal under international law, with settler violence against Palestinians seeing a large uptick since the start of Israel's war on Gaza.

Hamas politburo member Hossam Badran said on Thursday that the Palestinian group sees that any negotiations must be based on a clear plan to implement what was agreed on previously, as talks between mediators are set continue in Doha.

Badran reiterated in a statement published by Hamas that any deal should achieve a complete ceasefire, complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, a return of hostages, a return of displaced Palestinians and a hostage exchange deal.

(Reuters)

11 Palestinians have been injured by Israeli settlers who attacked the occupied West Bank village of Jit, east of Qalqiya, according to Al Jazeera quoting the Palestinian Red Crescent Society.

The Palestinian Ministry of Health previously announced one person had been killed and another critically wounded in the attack. 

Egypt's state-affiliated Al Qahera News TV on Thursday cited "informed sources" on Gaza ceasefire talks as saying that disagreements between parties "remain big".

The channel quoted a "high-level Egyptian source" as saying that the Egyptian delegation is intensifying efforts to reach a ceasefire agreement as talks continue in Doha.

(Reuters)

One Palestinian was killed and another was critically wounded by Israeli settlers' gunfire near the city of Qalqilya in the West Bank, the Palestinian health ministry said on Thursday.

Armed settlers attacked a village in the West Bank and fired live bullets at citizens, the Palestinian Wafa agency reported on Thursday. 

(Reuters)

Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank have attacked the village of Jit, east of Qalqilya, setting fire to a vehicle.

According to an Israeli security source quoted by Haaretz, the settlers, who are described as masked, also set fire to homes.

Gaza ceasefire-hostage release talks were ongoing in Qatar's Doha on Thursday evening and all participants are expected to continue meeting on Friday, an official briefed on the talks told Reuters on Thursday.

(Reuters)

Israeli protesters demanding a hostage deal are blocking Begin Way in Tel Aviv as Israeli negotiations are in Doha for talk with Egypt, Qatar and the US over a potential deal that would also see a ceasefire in Gaza.

Haaretz reported that dozens of protesters also took to streets in Haifa with the same demands.

Israeli military spokesperson Daniel Hagari said on Thursday that the military had eliminated more than "17,000 Palestinian militants in Gaza" since the start of the war.

The military declined to say if the word "eliminated" referred to those who had been killed or whether it included those captured or injured.

The United States on Thursday condemned Israel's approval of a settlement on a UNESCO World Heritage Site near Bethlehem, pointing to its harm to prospects for a Palestinian state.

Far-right minister Bezalel Smotrich announced the move on Wednesday, openly saying that Israel hoped to create new "facts on the ground" to prevent the creation of a Palestinian state.

"Every single one of these new settlements would impede Palestinian economic development and freedom of movement and undermine the feasibility of a two-state solution," State Department spokesman Vedant Patel told reporters.

"We find that to be inconsistent with international law, and we certainly oppose the advancement of settlements in the West Bank," he said.

The United States has stepped up criticism of Smotrich and Itamar Ben Gvir, far-right members of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government who oppose a plan by President Joe Biden aimed at ending the 10-month Gaza war.

Talks in Qatar on a Gaza ceasefire and a hostage deal represent a "crucial moment for global stability" that could "define the future of the Middle East", UK Foreign Minister David Lammy said Thursday.

"We are at a crucial moment for global stability. The coming hours and days could define the future of the Middle East. That is why today, and every day, we are urging for our partners across the region to choose peace," he said in a statement.

Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant has reportedly imposed sanctions on 18 ships allegedly involved in transporting oil belonging to the Quds Force of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) that he also said "benefit" Hezbollah and Hamas.

The National Bureau for Counter Terror Financing (NBCTF) of the Israeli ministry announced that this is part of the "economic campaign led by the defence establishment".

"The oil originates in the Iranian regime’s allocations to Quds Force, which transports the oil in tankers under a legitimate facade, in an effort to circumvent international sanctions in the context of terror financing, using methods that constitute a violation of maritime safety and environmental laws, in order to sell the oil to a wide range of countries," it says in a statement.

The UK's Foreign Minister David Lammy is set to meet Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu and his counterpart Israel Katz, Sky News has reported, citing diplomatic sources.

The meeting will be carried out in a bid to "prevent an all-out war in the Middle East", while Lammy's French counterpart, Stephane Sejourne, is also set to meet the Israeli officials.

BREAKING: UK Foreign Sec David Lammy to meet with Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu and Foreign Minister Israel Katz in attempt to prevent an all out war in the Middle East.

France's Foreign Minister Stéphane Séjourné is also expected to attend.https://t.co/OBPtkt7yft

📺Sky 501 pic.twitter.com/gj9gsMtL9q

— Sky News (@SkyNews) August 15, 2024

The Israeli delegation will reportedly stay in Doha until a a ceasefire agreement is reached between Hamas and Israel, the Israeli Channel 13 is reporting.

The White House National Security Adviser, John Kirby, said the start of the Gaza ceasefire talks in Doha was "promising", adding that he expects the ceasefire negotiations to "continue until tomorrow".

Kirby said: "Both sides reviewed Gaza's agreement proposal, made changes to it, while details of implementation are being discussed, though not the framework."

The United States on Thursday issued more sanctions targeting Houthi and Hezbollah trade networks, the US Treasury Department said, as Washington increases pressure on Tehran and the Iranian-backed groups.

The US Treasury Department in a statement said it targeted companies, individuals and vessels accused of being involved in the shipment of Iranian commodities, including oil and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) to Yemen and the United Arab Emirates on behalf of a Houthi financial official's network.

It said the revenue from Sa’id al-Jamal's network helps finance the Houthis' targeting of shipping in the Red Sea and civilian infrastructure. Attacks on vessels in the Red Sea by Iran-aligned Houthi militants have disrupted a shipping route vital to east-west trade, with prolonged rerouting of shipments pushing freight rates higher and causing congestion in Asian and European ports.

Also targeted on Thursday were Hezbollah shipments of LPG, including through the designation of a Hong Kong-based ship manager and operator as well as several tankers.

The Treasury said the Hezbollah-controlled Talaqi Group used two of the tankers to ship LPG worth tens of millions of dollars from Iran to China.

“Today’s action underscores our continued commitment to disrupting Iran’s primary source of funding to its regional terrorist proxies like Lebanese Hizballah and the Houthis," said Treasury's Acting Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, Bradley Smith.

"Our message is clear: those who seek to finance these groups’ destabilizing activities will be held to account."

French Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne said on Thursday from Beirut that a ceasefire in Gaza is "necessary" for peace in the region including Lebanon, as talks resumed in Qatar aiming to end the conflict.

"We are all worried about the regional situation," Sejourne said after meeting parliament speaker Nabih Berri, an ally of Lebanon's Hezbollah group.

France "supports Lebanon, and in this context and in the context of regional peace, we hope for the ceasefire... in the Gaza Strip, which... will be necessary to guarantee peace in the region," he said.

Before his arrival, Sejourne said in a statement on X that his visit aimed to "support ongoing diplomatic efforts towards de-escalation in the region".

His trip comes a day after US envoy Amos Hochstein visited Beirut and said there was "no more time to waste" for a Gaza ceasefire, noting it would "also help enable a diplomatic resolution" in Lebanon and prevent a wider war.

The UN human rights chief Thursday deplored the "grim milestone" of 40,000 Palestinians reported killed in Israel's 10-month assault on Gaza, accusing the country's military of breaking the "rules of war".

United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk blamed Israel for the soaring death toll in the territory, where it has waged war for over 10 months.

The health ministry in Gaza said on Thursday that the death toll from the conflict had reached at least 40,005 people, with another 92,401 wounded.

"Today marks a grim milestone for the world," Turk said in a statement.

"Most of the dead are women and children. This unimaginable situation is overwhelmingly due to recurring failures by the Israeli Defense Forces to comply with the rules of war," he added.

"The scale of the Israeli military's destruction of homes, hospitals, schools and places of worship is deeply shocking."

Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas told a special session of the Turkish parliament on Thursday that he would travel to Gaza.

He was speaking as health ministry officials in the territory said the death toll from Israel's brutal military assault had passed 40,000 people.

"I have decided to go to Gaza with other brothers from the Palestinian leadership," Abbas said in an address applauded by Turkish lawmakers.

"I will do that. Even if this would cost my life. Our life is not more worthy than the life of a child," he added.

Abbas, who added a visit to Turkey after meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow, said the Palestinian people would stand tall despite the Israeli strikes.

"Gaza is ours as a whole. We don't accept any solution that would divide our territories," he told the parliament.

"There cannot be a Palestinian state without Gaza. Our people will not surrender," he promised.

Ten months of cross-border violence between Hezbollah and Israeli forces has killed senior commanders and several hundred fighters from the Iran-backed group, causing destruction and displacing tens of thousands along the Lebanese and Israeli borders.

Hezbollah has seen more fighters killed since October than when it last went to war with Israel in the summer of 2006.

Israel and the Lebanese group have been trading near-daily fire with the Israeli army in support of Hamas one day after Israel's military campaign in the Gaza Strip began on October 7.

Nearly all Israelis evacuated from their homes near the Gaza Strip following the events of October 7 have returned, Israeli authorities said on Thursday.

More than 80 percent of the southern Israeli region's 50,000-plus population have moved back by July, with 3,700 more people returning since, according to the government agency tasked with reconstruction and rehabilitation of the border communities affected by the deadly attack.

Israeli authorities had offered evacuees from the Gaza border area accommodation in hotels paid for by the state, but that arrangement expire on Thursday.

The White House on Thursday urged all sides to attend Gaza ceasefire talks in Doha in order to get a deal implemented, urging Israel and Hamas to compromise and saying progress is still possible in coming days.

White House national security spokesman John Kirby, in an interview on CNN, also said information shows Iran has not moved off its threat to attack Israel, including potentially through proxies. The US is watching the situation closely and is prepared, though "hopefully it doesn't come to that," he said

Negotiations over a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal started in Doha Thursday, The New Arab's  Gaza correspondent and a source with knowledge of the talks told AFP.

The source confirmed the start of the meetings but did not disclose whether Palestinian Islamist group Hamas had dispatched any delegates to the talks which Israel and CIA director William Burns planned to attend.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denied on Thursday a report that he had spoken the previous day with Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump about Gaza ceasefire and hostage release talks.

"Contrary to media reports, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not speak yesterday with former President Donald Trump," a statement from Netanyahu's office said.

The report, in Axios, cited two US sources. One source said Trump's call was intended to encourage Netanyahu to take the deal, but stressed he did not know if this is indeed what the former president told Netanyahu. The Trump campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Egypt, the United States and Qatar have scheduled a new round of Gaza ceasefire negotiations for Thursday. 

Nearly 100 rabbis from across the United States have signed a statement calling for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to agree to a ceasefire deal in Gaza.

The signatories include well-known rabbis from all over the country and the faith's denominational spectrum. The list includes Reform, Conservative, Orthodox, and Secular leaders, the Times of Israel said.

"We urgently call upon the Israeli Prime Minister and all relevant parties to finalize the deal on the table — outlined by President [Joe] Biden and endorsed by Qatar, Egypt, and the UN Security Council — and to bring much-needed relief to those suffering," the statement reads.

The statement comes as the latest batch of ceasefire talks are due to start Thursday in Doha. 

Benjamin Netanyahu is reportedly planning on speaking in the UN in September, where he will address the General Assembly, Israel's ambassador to the UN told local media.

The Israeli premier will reportedly speak on either September 26 or 27, Danon told the Jerusalem Post.

"We are preparing the ground for the visit of the prime minister. I believe he will arrive - we don't know what will happen tomorrow in Israel - but the plans are that he will come and speak in front of the General Assembly."

A Hamas guard who killed an Israeli hostage on Monday acted 'in revenge' against instructions after he got news that his two children were killed in an Israeli strike, the spokesperson for the group's armed al-Qassam Brigades, Abu Obaida, said on Thursday in a post on Telegram.

The incident doesn't represent the group's ethics, he added.

The Melbourne Symphony Orchestra said on Thursday it had made a mistake in cancelling a performance by a celebrated British-Australian pianist over remarks criticising Israel's deadly military campaign in Gaza.

At a Sunday concert, British-Australian pianist Jayson Gillham dedicated a piece to "the journalists of Gaza" - some of whom, he said, had been the victims of "targeted assassinations" by Israeli forces.

The Melbourne Symphony Orchestra said the use of their stage "for expressing personal views" was inappropriate and abruptly cancelled his Thursday appearance.

The orchestra has described Gillham, who previously performed a benefit concert for the Palestine Children's Relief Fund, as "one of the finest pianists of his generation".

After a fierce public backlash, the orchestra on Thursday apologised for its "error" in "asking Jayson to step back from his performance".

But it maintained "that a concert platform is not an appropriate stage for political comment", and said Thursday's performance was still being cancelled due to "safety" concerns.

Australian musicians union the Music, Entertainment and Arts Alliance accused the orchestra of "over-reach", adding "music and art exist in a political and social context".

Israel's military offensive in the Gaza Strip has killed at least 40,005 Palestinians and wounded 92,401 since Israel began its military offensive on October 7, the Palestinian enclave's health ministry said on Thursday.

A total of 40 Palestinians have been killed and 107 wounded in the past 24 hours, the ministry said in a statement. 

 A military adviser from Iran's Revolutionary Guard's Aerospace Force died following injuries sustained in Syria over recent weeks, the semi-official Fars news agency reported on Thursday.

The Israeli army has reportedly issued a new evacuation order, demanding that “all residents of Blocks 38, 39, 41, 42 in Al-Qarara 3 and Al-Sathar neighbouhoods" in south-eastern Gaza.

"Against the backdrop of the continuous firing of rockets by Hamas and terrorist organizations from your areas, the [Israeli army] will act forcefully against these terrorist elements immediately," the army's Arabic-language spokesperson said on X.

Senior US officials told the New York Times that Israel "has achieved all that it can militarily in Gaza", and that captives still held in the war-hit territory can only be released through an agreement.

According to the officials, continued bombings are only "increasing risks to civilians while the possibility of further weakening Hamas has diminished".

The officials added that the "Israeli military had severely set back Hamas" but would never be able to completely "eliminate the group".

 Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan hosted Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas for talks that focused on the conflict in Gaza, Erdogan’s office said, ahead of a planned address to parliament Thursday.

Erdogan’s office said late Wednesday that the two discussed :the massacres committed by Israel in Palestinian territories" and "the steps that need to be taken for a permanent cease-fire and peace" at the presidential palace in Ankara.

The statement, released on the social media platform X, said Erdogan pledged continued support to "Palestine’s just cause" and to work to "increase the pressure on Israel by the international community … especially the Islamic world" to deliver humanitarian aid and bring peace.

The families of hostages and their supporters staged protests in Tel Aviv, on Thursday, in a bid to pressure the government to reach a ceasefire deal which would see the release of any remaining captives in Gaza.

An Israeli air strike on a refugee camp in the occupied West Bank killed two Palestinians on Thursday, Palestinian sources and Israeli army said.

"Two men, aged 18 and 20, were killed and seven people were wounded, one of them seriously, in Balata" refugee camp in Nablus, the Palestinian health ministry said in a statement.

The official Palestinian news agency, Wafa, said a woman and a child were among the wounded, describing the incident as a "drone strike".

The Israeli military claimed two armed militants were killed in a strike.

The two Palestinians were identified as  of Ahmad Sheikh Khalil and Wael Mish, Wafa said.

At least 16 Palestinian men were detained by Israeli forces at dawn on Thursday, following a raid and search of their homes, the Palestinian news agency Wafa said.

Among those detained were siblings and a lawyer, Wafa said.

Israeli forces also set fire to the house of local resident Adnan Abu Hammad after they fired a toxic gas bomb at it, leading to severe material damage.