Live updates: Follow the latest on Israel-Gaza
Hamas “will not attend” Thursday’s Gaza ceasefire talks in Doha and is demanding an immediate cessation of hostilities based on previous negotiations, a senior group official told The National, hours after US President Joe Biden said achieving a deal is becoming more difficult.
Leaders of the US, Qatar and Egypt urged Israel and Hamas to resume Gaza ceasefire talks in Doha or Cairo on Thursday. A source close to the negotiations told The National that the talks will be held in Doha with the presence of Qatari, US and Egyptian officials "to discuss a ceasefire agreement in Gaza and the exchange of prisoners".
The Israeli side will be present at the negotiations in Doha, another source told The National. The office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu later confirmed that he had approved the departure of the Israeli delegation to the Qatari capital on Thursday.
Reaching a deal to stop the war in the Palestinian territory has been also linked to Iran's avowed retaliation against Israel, according to various sources, who said that Tehran would delay its response if a truce is announced.
Israel has been bracing for an expected Iranian attack since Tehran vowed to retaliate for the suspected Israeli assassination of Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh at an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps guesthouse on July 31. An Iranian assault, with Lebanese ally Hezbollah, also threatens all-out war in Lebanon, where Israel has launched daily attacks since the militant group joined the Israel-Gaza war on October 8.
Hamas initially said it was considering the offer to join the talks but then called on mediators to implement what was already agreed on. Israeli officials said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu put new conditions on the previously approved deal, but his office denied the allegation and confirmed that an Israeli delegation will attend despite emphasizing that a ceasefire deal won't end the war.
“Hamas is not concerned with Thursday's negotiations, and has not changed its position, and will not attend,” Hamas representative in Lebanon Ahmad Abdul Hadi told The National on Wednesday.
“Its position is clear, which is the necessity of stopping the aggression immediately, and therefore it does not want to participate because it does not want to restart the negotiations from scratch.”
Mr Abdul Hadi said Hamas will be “waiting to see what will result from tomorrow's negotiations and if they want to return to the July deal which we have already agreed to”. He accused Mr Netanyahu of “lying and deceiving. Even his Defence Minister admitted that the current government is the one who is thwarting the agreement”.
“The ball is not in our court now. Hamas will keep moving on two parallel lines, defending Gaza and demanding a ceasefire,” said Mr Abdul Hadi.
US 'not giving up'
Mr Biden outlined a three-phase ceasefire proposal in late May. The US, Egypt and Qatar have since been trying without success to broker a truce in Gaza, as well as a hostage release deal. Sources said that Hamas had softened its position and agreed to the framework of that deal.
The proposal on the table comes in three phases that firstly would comprise “a full and complete ceasefire,” the withdrawal of Israeli forces from “all populated areas of Gaza” and the release of “a number of hostages – including women, the elderly and the wounded – in exchange for the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners”.
The initial phase is expected to last six weeks, during which Israel and Hamas would “negotiate the necessary arrangements” to move to the second phase, which would centre on the “release of all remaining living hostages” in exchange for the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza.
The final phase would include a “major reconstruction plan for Gaza” and the return of “any final remains of hostages who have been killed” to their families.
Earlier on Tuesday, Mr Biden said discussions were “getting hard” but he is “not giving up”, AFP reported. Asked if a truce between Israel and Hamas could stave off an Iranian assault, he said: “That's my expectation.”
Mr Biden was speaking in New Orleans shortly before Secretary of State Antony Blinken approved a $20 billion weapons package to Israel,
The killing of Mr Haniyeh, who was the top Hamas negotiator, froze already-fragile ceasefire negotiations that have been continuing for months. The appointment of hardliner Yahya Sinwar, the most-wanted militant in Gaza by Israel, as his successor was expected to harden Hamas's approach to the negotiations, including staying away from the table while Israel presses on with its military campaign.
Gaza’s death toll is edging closer to 40,000 after more than 300 days of war. More than 92,000 people have been wounded, almost all of the enclave’s population displaced several times, and most of its basic infrastructure destroyed.
Meanwhile, relatives of Israeli hostages still held in the enclave – estimated at around 115, although only half are said to still be alive – have repeatedly urged Mr Netanyahu to secure a deal. They accuse him of putting his own political interests ahead of the fate of the captives.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
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The Settlers
Director: Louis Theroux
Starring: Daniella Weiss, Ari Abramowitz
Rating: 5/5
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
CREW
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Company profile
Name: Infinite8
Based: Dubai
Launch year: 2017
Number of employees: 90
Sector: Online gaming industry
Funding: $1.2m from a UAE angel investor
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
Results
5pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (Turf) 1,600m; Winner: Nadhra, Fabrice Veron (jockey), Eric Lemartinel (trainer)
5.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,400m; Winner: AF Dars, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel
6pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,400m; Winner: AF Musannef, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel
6.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,200m; Winner: AF Taghzel, Malin Holmberg, Ernst Oertel
7pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (T) 2,200m; Winner: M’Y Yaromoon, Khalifa Al Neyadi, Jesus Rosales
7.30pm: Handicap (TB) Dh100,000 (PA) 1,400m; Winner: Hakeem, Jim Crowley, Ali Rashid Al Raihe
Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
CHELSEA SQUAD
Arrizabalaga, Bettinelli, Rudiger, Christensen, Silva, Chalobah, Sarr, Azpilicueta, James, Kenedy, Alonso, Jorginho, Kante, Kovacic, Saul, Barkley, Ziyech, Pulisic, Mount, Hudson-Odoi, Werner, Havertz, Lukaku.
In numbers
- Number of children under five will fall from 681 million in 2017 to 401m in 2100
- Over-80s will rise from 141m in 2017 to 866m in 2100
- Nigeria will become the world’s second most populous country with 791m by 2100, behind India
- China will fall dramatically from a peak of 2.4 billion in 2024 to 732 million by 2100
- an average of 2.1 children per woman is required to sustain population growth
APPLE IPAD MINI (A17 PRO)
Display: 21cm Liquid Retina Display, 2266 x 1488, 326ppi, 500 nits
Chip: Apple A17 Pro, 6-core CPU, 5-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine
Storage: 128/256/512GB
Main camera: 12MP wide, f/1.8, digital zoom up to 5x, Smart HDR 4
Front camera: 12MP ultra-wide, f/2.4, Smart HDR 4, full-HD @ 25/30/60fps
Biometrics: Touch ID, Face ID
Colours: Blue, purple, space grey, starlight
In the box: iPad mini, USB-C cable, 20W USB-C power adapter
Price: From Dh2,099
Ibrahim's play list
Completed an electrical diploma at the Adnoc Technical Institute
Works as a public relations officer with Adnoc
Apart from the piano, he plays the accordion, oud and guitar
His favourite composer is Johann Sebastian Bach
Also enjoys listening to Mozart
Likes all genres of music including Arabic music and jazz
Enjoys rock groups Scorpions and Metallica
Other musicians he likes are Syrian-American pianist Malek Jandali and Lebanese oud player Rabih Abou Khalil
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
THE%20SPECS
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Company info
Company name: Entrupy
Co-founders: Vidyuth Srinivasan, co-founder/chief executive, Ashlesh Sharma, co-founder/chief technology officer, Lakshmi Subramanian, co-founder/chief scientist
Based: New York, New York
Sector/About: Entrupy is a hardware-enabled SaaS company whose mission is to protect businesses, borders and consumers from transactions involving counterfeit goods.
Initial investment/Investors: Entrupy secured a $2.6m Series A funding round in 2017. The round was led by Tokyo-based Digital Garage and Daiwa Securities Group's jointly established venture arm, DG Lab Fund I Investment Limited Partnership, along with Zach Coelius.
Total customers: Entrupy’s customers include hundreds of secondary resellers, marketplaces and other retail organisations around the world. They are also testing with shipping companies as well as customs agencies to stop fake items from reaching the market in the first place.
FROM%20THE%20ASHES
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Boulder shooting victims
• Denny Strong, 20
• Neven Stanisic, 23
• Rikki Olds, 25
• Tralona Bartkowiak, 49
• Suzanne Fountain, 59
• Teri Leiker, 51
• Eric Talley, 51
• Kevin Mahoney, 61
• Lynn Murray, 62
• Jody Waters, 65
