Live updates: Follow the latest news on Israel-Gaza
Hamas on Thursday said it had responded positively to the ceasefire proposal outlined by US President Joe Biden and blamed Israel for the apparent stalemate in efforts to bring the Gaza war to an end.
The Palestinian militant group also accused US Secretary of State Antony Blinken of seeking to exonerate Israel from responsibility for the lack of progress during negotiations.
It said comments made by Mr Blinken show that the US is complicit in “the brutal war of genocide against our Palestinian people" and said Washington was allowing the "occupation to continue its crime with full US political and military cover”.
Hamas on Tuesday gave its response to President Biden’s proposals, via Qatari and Egyptian mediators, effectively rejecting them without a guarantee of a permanent ceasefire and a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.
The proposals envisage a six-week ceasefire, a prisoner and hostage swap between Israel and Hamas as well as the reconstruction of Gaza and a flow of adequate humanitarian aid to the coastal enclave battered by eight months of war.
The two sides, according to the plan, are supposed to use that six-week period to negotiate an agreement on the second phase, which Mr Biden said would include the release of all remaining living hostages, including male soldiers, and Israel's full withdrawal from Gaza.
The temporary ceasefire would become permanent, but only if the two sides agree on the details.
Hamas, according to sources with direct knowlege of the negtiations, is concerned that Israel will resume military operations in Gaza once all hostages are freed.
Thursday’s Hamas statement made no mention of the changes the group wants to see in the proposals before accepting it. It said it had “expressed its positive position” on Mr Biden’s plan and pointed out that Israel has yet to officially state its position, despite US assertions that it had agreed to the plan.
“While Blinken continues to talk about Israel’s approval of the latest proposals, we haven’t heard any Israeli official voicing approval,” said the Hamas statement.
The statement came just a few hours after US National security adviser Jake Sullivan pushed back against assertions that Israel is not fully committed to the proposals.
“Israel has supplied this proposal. It has been sitting on the table for some time. Israel has not contradicted or walked that back,” Mr Sullivan said in Italy, where Mr Biden is attending the annual Group of Seven leaders’ summit.
“To this day they stand behind the proposal,” he said. “I don’t think that there is a contradiction in the Israeli position.”
Mr Sullivan repeated that Hamas had responded by offering an amended proposal and said that the objective remains “to figure out how we work to bridge the remaining gaps and get to a deal.
“The goal is to try to bring this to a conclusion as rapidly as possible.”
In Doha on Wednesday, Mr Blinken blamed Hamas for the stalemate, saying some of the changes to the proposals it suggested could work while others were not workable.
The US and fellow mediators Egypt and Qatar, he said, will press ahead to bridge gaps between the group and Israel.
“Hamas could have answered with a single word: Yes,” he told a news conference in the Qatari capital, the final step of a four-nation Middle East tour that also saw him visit Egypt, Israel and Jordan.
It was his eighth tour of the region since the Gaza war broke out in October.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Xpanceo
Started: 2018
Founders: Roman Axelrod, Valentyn Volkov
Based: Dubai, UAE
Industry: Smart contact lenses, augmented/virtual reality
Funding: $40 million
Investor: Opportunity Venture (Asia)
Abu Dhabi race card
5pm Abu Dhabi Fillies Classic Prestige | Dh110,000 | 1,400m
5.30pm Abu Dhabi Colts Classic Prestige | Dh110,000 | 1,400m
6pm Abu Dhabi Championship Listed | Dh180,000 | 1,600m
6.30pm Maiden | Dh80,000 | 1,600m
7pm Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap | Dh80,000 | 1,400m
7.30pm Handicap (TB) |Dh100,000 | 2,400m
White hydrogen: Naturally occurring hydrogen
Chromite: Hard, metallic mineral containing iron oxide and chromium oxide
Ultramafic rocks: Dark-coloured rocks rich in magnesium or iron with very low silica content
Ophiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on land
Olivine: A commonly occurring magnesium iron silicate mineral that derives its name for its olive-green yellow-green colour
Polarised public
31% in UK say BBC is biased to left-wing views
19% in UK say BBC is biased to right-wing views
19% in UK say BBC is not biased at all
Source: YouGov
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
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Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
If you go
The flights
There are direct flights from Dubai to Sofia with FlyDubai (www.flydubai.com) and Wizz Air (www.wizzair.com), from Dh1,164 and Dh822 return including taxes, respectively.
The trip
Plovdiv is 150km from Sofia, with an hourly bus service taking around 2 hours and costing $16 (Dh58). The Rhodopes can be reached from Sofia in between 2-4hours.
The trip was organised by Bulguides (www.bulguides.com), which organises guided trips throughout Bulgaria. Guiding, accommodation, food and transfers from Plovdiv to the mountains and back costs around 170 USD for a four-day, three-night trip.
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Company%20profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Fasset%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2019%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Mohammad%20Raafi%20Hossain%2C%20Daniel%20Ahmed%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFinTech%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInitial%20investment%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%242.45%20million%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECurrent%20number%20of%20staff%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2086%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Pre-series%20B%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Investcorp%2C%20Liberty%20City%20Ventures%2C%20Fatima%20Gobi%20Ventures%2C%20Primal%20Capital%2C%20Wealthwell%20Ventures%2C%20FHS%20Capital%2C%20VN2%20Capital%2C%20local%20family%20offices%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
AI traffic lights to ease congestion at seven points to Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Street
The seven points are:
Shakhbout bin Sultan Street
Dhafeer Street
Hadbat Al Ghubainah Street (outbound)
Salama bint Butti Street
Al Dhafra Street
Rabdan Street
Umm Yifina Street exit (inbound)
FA CUP FINAL
Manchester City 6
(D Silva 26', Sterling 38', 81', 87', De Bruyne 61', Jesus 68')
Watford 0
Man of the match: Bernardo Silva (Manchester City)
Founders: Abdulmajeed Alsukhan, Turki Bin Zarah and Abdulmohsen Albabtain.
Based: Riyadh
Offices: UAE, Vietnam and Germany
Founded: September, 2020
Number of employees: 70
Sector: FinTech, online payment solutions
Funding to date: $116m in two funding rounds
Investors: Checkout.com, Impact46, Vision Ventures, Wealth Well, Seedra, Khwarizmi, Hala Ventures, Nama Ventures and family offices
Electric scooters: some rules to remember
- Riders must be 14-years-old or over
- Wear a protective helmet
- Park the electric scooter in designated parking lots (if any)
- Do not leave electric scooter in locations that obstruct traffic or pedestrians
- Solo riders only, no passengers allowed
- Do not drive outside designated lanes
Tank warfare
Lt Gen Erik Petersen, deputy chief of programs, US Army, has argued it took a “three decade holiday” on modernising tanks.
“There clearly remains a significant armoured heavy ground manoeuvre threat in this world and maintaining a world class armoured force is absolutely vital,” the general said in London last week.
“We are developing next generation capabilities to compete with and deter adversaries to prevent opportunism or miscalculation, and, if necessary, defeat any foe decisively.”
Cry Macho
Director: Clint Eastwood
Stars: Clint Eastwood, Dwight Yoakam
Rating:**
