what to remember from Thursday February 1st

Witnesses reported Israeli strikes near the Nasser hospital in Khan Younes, a town at the heart of the fighting in the south of the Gaza Strip.

While the fighting rages in the Palestinian territory, Hamas gave Thursday February 1 a “first positive confirmation” to a proposal for a humanitarian pause in Gaza and the release of hostages, a solution “approved” also by Israel, according to Qatar, which is acting as mediator in these negotiations. Franceinfo looks back at what to remember from this day.

Talks for a truce continue

Hamas gave a “first positive confirmation” to a proposed truce in the Gaza Strip and the release of hostages held in the Palestinian territory, the spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Qatar declared on Thursday February 1st. “The Paris meeting made it possible to consolidate the proposals (…) This proposal was approved by the Israeli side”said Majed al-Ansari, referring to a meeting last weekend between American, Israeli, Qatari and Egyptian representatives in France.

A source close to Hamas in Gaza, however, told AFP that there was still no consensus on the proposal and that “Qatar’s declaration [était] rushed and false”. Hamas leader Ismaïl Haniyeh, who lives in exile in Qatar, was expected in Egypt on Thursday or Friday to discuss a new cessation of fighting.

Israeli strikes near a hospital in Khan Younes

In Gaza, Israeli fighting and raids continue, worsening the already disastrous humanitarian situation. Witnesses reported Israeli strikes near the Nasser hospital in Khan Younes, in the south of the Palestinian enclave, where, according to Israel, leaders of the Palestinian Islamist movement are hiding.

In the Nasser hospital, overwhelmed doctors try to cope with the influx of wounded. “There are no more than five or six doctors in the emergency room. Each of us has to take care of ten cases at the same time. The injured who arrive die before we can take care of them”a doctor, Mahmoud Raja Abou Chamala, testified to AFP.

Joe Biden takes sanctions in the face of “intolerable” violence by Israeli settlers in the West Bank

US President Joe Biden adopted an unprecedented measure on Thursday aimed at sanctioning Israeli settlers accused of violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, where violence has increased on the sidelines of the war in Gaza to reach him “intolerable levels”.

“Israel must do more to end violence against civilians in the West Bank and hold those responsible to account”, reiterated the head of American diplomacy, Antony Blinken, who is due to visit the region again in the coming days. In response, Israel considered that there was no “no room for exceptional measures” against Israeli settlers.