Trump Gaza peace plan – Artifex.News https://artifex.news Stay Connected. Stay Informed. Sat, 15 Nov 2025 04:41:00 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.8.3 https://artifex.news/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/cropped-Artifex-Round-32x32.png Trump Gaza peace plan – Artifex.News https://artifex.news 32 32 UN Security Council to vote on November 17 on Trump’s Gaza plan https://artifex.news/article70282905-ece/ Sat, 15 Nov 2025 04:41:00 +0000 https://artifex.news/article70282905-ece/ Read More “UN Security Council to vote on November 17 on Trump’s Gaza plan” »

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United Nations Security Council.
| Photo Credit: AP

The UN Security Council will vote on Monday (November 17, 2025) on a resolution endorsing U.S. President Donald Trump’s Gaza peace plan, diplomats said.

Last week the Americans officially launched negotiations within the 15-member Security Council on a text that would follow up on a ceasefire in the two-year war between Israel and Hamas and endorse Mr. Trump’s plan.

A draft of the resolution seen on Thursday by AFP “welcomes the establishment of the Board of Peace,” a transitional governing body for Gaza — that Mr. Trump would theoretically chair — with a mandate running until the end of 2027.

It would authorise member states to form a “temporary International Stabilization Force (ISF)” that would work with Israel and Egypt and newly trained Palestinian police to help secure border areas and demilitarize the Gaza Strip.

Unlike previous drafts, the latest mentions a possible future Palestinian state.

The United States and several Arab and Muslim-majority nations including Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Turkey called on Friday for the UN Security Council to quickly adopt the resolution.

“The United States, Qatar, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Pakistan, Jordan, and Türkiye express our joint support for the Security Council Resolution currently under consideration,” the countries said in a joint statement, adding they were seeking the measure’s “swift adoption.”

Friday’s joint statement comes as Russia circulated a competing draft resolution to Council members that does not authorise the creation of a board of peace or the immediate deployment of an international force in Gaza, according to the text seen Friday by AFP.

The Russian version welcomes “the initiative that led to the ceasefire” but does not name Mr. Trump.

It also only calls on the UN secretary-general to submit a report that addresses the possibilities of deploying an international stabilization force in war-ravaged Gaza.

The United States has called the ceasefire “fragile,” and warned on Friday of the risks of not adopting its draft.

“Any refusal to back this resolution is a vote either for the continued reign of Hamas terrorists or for the return to war with Israel, condemning the region and its people to perpetual conflict,” the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Mike Waltz, wrote in The Washington Post.

“Every departure from this path, be it by those who wish to play political games or to relitigate the past, will come with a real human cost.”

While it seemed until now that Council members supported principles of the peace plan, diplomatic sources noted there were questions about the U.S. text, particularly regarding the absence of a monitoring mechanism by the Council, the role of the Palestinian Authority, and details of the ISF’s mandate.

The Russian UN mission said in a statement that its alternative proposal differed by recognizing the principle of a “two-State solution for the Israeli-Palestinian settlement.”

“Unfortunately, these provisions were not given due regard in the U.S. draft,” it said.



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Palestinians find Gaza City in ruins as Hamas warns tough talks ahead https://artifex.news/article70153265-ece/ Sat, 11 Oct 2025 20:21:00 +0000 https://artifex.news/article70153265-ece/ Read More “Palestinians find Gaza City in ruins as Hamas warns tough talks ahead” »

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Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians returned to a devastated Gaza City on Saturday (October 11, 2025), as Hamas warned the next stage in U.S. President Donald Trump’s peace plan would be more difficult than the first.

Mr. Trump’s Middle East envoy promised Israeli hostage families their loved ones would be returned to them by Monday, and the region’s top U.S. general visited Gaza one day after the guns fell silent.

Israel and Hamas are now expected to release hostages and prisoners, two years after the Palestinian militant group’s October 7, 2023 attack triggered a counteroffensive that killed more than 67,000 Palestinians.

But after the prisoner exchange and a partial Israeli withdrawal, the conflict’s U.S.-led mediators will then have to secure a longer-term political solution that will see Hamas hand in its weapons and step aside from governing Gaza.

In an interview with AFP in Qatar, Hossam Badran, a member of Hamas’s political bureau, warned: “The second phase of the Trump plan, as it is clear from the points themselves, contains many complexities and difficulties.”

Hamas to miss Gaza peace deal formal signing

Hamas, he said, would not attend the formal signing of the Gaza peace deal in Egypt, where international leaders are due to gather Monday to discuss implementing the first phase of the ceasefire.

Hamas is resisting calls to disarm. An official from the group, speaking on condition of anonymity, told AFP that it was “out of the question”.

Mr. Badran said that, while the group does not want war, “our Palestinian people and the resistance force will undoubtedly confront and use all their capabilities to repel this aggression if this battle is imposed”.

Displaced Palestinians inspect the remains of their destroyed homes in the heavily damaged Sheikh Radwan neighbourhood in Gaza City.
| Photo Credit:
AP

Multinational force

Under the Trump plan, as Israel conducts a phased withdrawal from Gaza’s cities, it will be replaced by a multinational force from Egypt, Qatar, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates, coordinated by a U.S.-led command centre in Israel.

On Saturday, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) chief Admiral Brad Cooper, special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-on-law Jared Kushner visited Gaza to plan the next phase of the truce with Israeli army chief Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir.

U.S. envoy Witkoff, in message to Gaza hostages, says you are coming home

Witkoff, Kushner and Trump’s daughter Ivanka then went on to Tel Aviv to attend a vigil with the families of the remaining Israeli hostages held in Gaza. A huge crowd greeted them with cheers and chants of “Thank you Trump!”.

“Your courage has moved the world,” Witkoff told the families. “To the hostages themselves: you are coming home.”

Einav Zangauker, whose son Matan is one of about 20 hostages believed to still be alive, said: “We will continue to shout and fight until everyone is home.”

Hamas has until noon on Monday to hand over 47 remaining Israeli hostages -living and dead – from the 251 abducted two years ago.

The remains of one more hostage, held in Gaza since 2014, are also expected to be returned.

In exchange, Israel will release 250 prisoners, including some of those serving life sentences for deadly anti-Israeli attacks, and 1,700 Gazans detained by the military since the war broke out.

The Israeli prison service said on Saturday it had moved the 250 national security detainees to the prisons of Ofer, in the occupied West Bank, and Ketziot in southern Israel’s Negev desert, ahead of the handover.

Displaced Palestinians ride on trucks loaded with belongings and wave Egyptian and Palestinian flags as they travel along the coastal road near Wadi Gaza in the central Gaza Strip, moving toward Gaza City, after Israel and Hamas agreed to a pause in their war and the release of the remaining hostages.

Displaced Palestinians ride on trucks loaded with belongings and wave Egyptian and Palestinian flags as they travel along the coastal road near Wadi Gaza in the central Gaza Strip, moving toward Gaza City, after Israel and Hamas agreed to a pause in their war and the release of the remaining hostages.
| Photo Credit:
AP

‘Stood and cried’

According to Gaza’s civil defence agency, a rescue service operating under Hamas authority, more than 500,000 Palestinians had returned to Gaza City by Saturday evening.

“We walked for hours, and every step was filled with fear and anxiety for my home,” Raja Salmi, 52, told AFP.

When she reached the Al-Rimal neighbourhood, she found her house utterly destroyed.

“I stood before it and cried. All those memories are now just dust,” she said.

Drone footage shot by AFP showed whole city blocks reduced to a twisted mess of concrete and steel reinforcing wire.

The walls and windows of five-storey apartment blocks had been torn off and now lay choking the roadsides as disconsolate residents poked through the rubble.

The United Nations humanitarian office says Israel has allowed agencies to start transporting 170,000 tonnes of aid into Gaza if the ceasefire holds.

‘Ghost town’

Men, women and children navigated streets filled with rubble, searching for homes amid collapsed concrete slabs, destroyed vehicles and debris.

While some returned in vehicles, most walked, carrying belongings in bags strapped to their shoulders.

Sami Musa, 28, returned alone to check on his family’s house.

“Thank God… I found that our home is still standing,” Musa told AFP.

“It felt like a ghost town, not Gaza,” Musa said. “The smell of death still lingers in the air.”

Israel’s campaign in Gaza has killed at least 67,682 people, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory, figures the United Nations considers credible.

The data does not distinguish between civilians and combatants but indicates that more than half of the dead are women and children.

The war was sparked by Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, which resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures.



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Israel-Gaza peace talks: Hamas and Israel enter third day, top Trump envoy expected to join https://artifex.news/article70139238-ece/ Wed, 08 Oct 2025 11:44:00 +0000 https://artifex.news/article70139238-ece/ Read More “Israel-Gaza peace talks: Hamas and Israel enter third day, top Trump envoy expected to join” »

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Smoke rises following an Israeli military strike in Gaza City as seen from the central Gaza Strip on October 8, 2025.
| Photo Credit: AP

Israel and Hamas entered a third day of peace talks at an Egyptian resort Wednesday (October 8, 2025), with more senior officials from the United States, Israel and mediating countries expected to join — a sign that negotiators aim to tackle the toughest issues of an American plan to end the war in Gaza.

Hamas says it is seeking firm guarantees from U.S. President Donald Trump and mediators that Israel will not resume its military campaign in the Palestinian territory after the militant group releases all the remaining hostages.

All sides have expressed optimism for a deal to end the two-year war, with tens of thousands of Palestinians killed and most of the Gaza Strip destroyed.

But key parts of the peace plan have still not been pinned down — including requirements that Hamas disarm, the timing and extent of an Israeli troop withdrawal from Gaza and the creation of an international body to run Gaza after Hamas steps down from power.

Qatar’s Prime Minister and top diplomat, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, was heading to the Egyptian coastal city of Sharm el-Sheikh to join the talks.

Also expected onWednesday (October 8, 2025) were Trump’s Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff and the President’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, according to a U.S. official who was not authorised to talk to reporters because the trip has not yet been formally announced.

From Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s top adviser, Ron Dermer, was also to join, an Israeli official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak to the media.

As Qatari, Egyptian and U.S. mediators met with both sides in preliminary talks on Wednesday (October 8, 2025) morning, a senior Hamas official, Taher Nounou, said the group has exchanged a list of Palestinian prisoners it seeks to release in return for Israeli hostages under the deal’s terms.

Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi said on Wednesday (October 8, 2025) in televised comments that the negotiations so far “were very encouraging”.



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Israel, Hamas prepare for talks in Egypt over possible Gaza ceasefire, release of hostages https://artifex.news/article70131088-ece/ Mon, 06 Oct 2025 11:36:00 +0000 https://artifex.news/article70131088-ece/ Read More “Israel, Hamas prepare for talks in Egypt over possible Gaza ceasefire, release of hostages” »

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Israeli and Hamas officials are meeting in an Egyptian resort on Monday (October 6, 2025) in hopes of hammering out a potential ceasefire in Gaza on the eve of the second anniversary.

The indirect negotiations will take place in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, where the Israeli delegation, headed by top negotiator Ron Dermer, is set to arrive Monday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said.

Hamas’ delegation, headed by Khalil al-Hayyah, arrived on Sunday in Egypt, the group said in a statement.

It said the negotiations will focus on the first stage of a ceasefire, including the partial withdrawal of Israeli forces as well as the release of hostages held by the militants in Gaza in exchange for Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli detention.

U.S. Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff and President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner are also expected to join the talks, Egypt’s state-run Al-Ahram reported.

This latest push for peace comes after Hamas accepted some elements of the U.S. peace plan, a move welcomed by Mr. Trump. Israel has said it supported the new U.S. effort. Under the plan, Hamas would release the remaining 48 hostages — about 20 believed to be alive — within three days. It would give up power and disarm.

The talks in Egypt are expected to move fast as Netanyahu said they would be “confined to a few days maximum,” though some Hamas officials have warned more time may be needed to locate the bodies of hostages buried under rubble.

Tamping down bombing

Israel’s heavy bombardment of Gaza would need to stop for Israeli hostages to be released. Israel says it’s largely heeding Trump’s call for ending the bombing. The Israeli military said it is mostly carrying out defensive strikes to protect troops, though dozens of Palestinians have been killed since Saturday night when the military made the announcement.

The Israeli military said Monday (October 6) that it eliminated “a terrorist cell armed with explosive devices and mortars” that on Sunday intended to attack Israeli soldiers.

It also destroyed another “terrorist cell” that launched a mortar, injuring one soldier, as well as a structure from where an anti-tank missile was launched against Israeli army engineering machinery.

Hamas-led militants abducted 251 people and killed around 1,200, mostly civilians, in the Oct. 7, 2023, attack that triggered the war. Most of the hostages have been released in a ceasefire or other deals.

Gaza’s Health Ministry said the Palestinian death toll in the war reached 67,139 on Sunday, with nearly 170,000 injured. The ministry does not differentiate how many of those killed were civilians or combatants, but says women and children make up about half of the dead. The ministry is part of the Hamas-run government, and the UN and many independent experts consider its figures to be the most reliable estimate of wartime casualties.

‘Living in fear, war and displacement’

In Gaza, Palestinian babies born on the day that the war began are hoping to celebrate their second birthday to the sound of laughter and cheers instead of the cacophony of bombs, missiles and bullets.

The hope of mothers to bring up their children in some semblance of normality that many take for granted has long worn thin amid the despair of repeated displacements, a constant fear for their safety and a lack of access to proper healthcare.

Rola Saqer said the two years since giving birth to her daughter Masa have been full of suffering and misery.

“I was hoping (Masa) would grow up with a strong personality, but she is weak. She has suffered malnutrition. The girl has weighed eight kilos for five months now,” Rola, who was displaced from Gaza’s northern town of Beit Lahia, said.

Rola and her husband, Mohammed Zaqout, have been trying to have a child for five years.

“I am scared for my daughter. She is two, and she has been living in fear, war and displacement,” said Saqer. Hanging laundry, a plastic chair, a carpet, and a basic settee make up the family’s possessions in their tent in the Nuseirat refugee camp.

Amal al-Taweel and her husband, Mostafa, had their son Ali after three years of trying for a child. Now living in a tent inside an alley of the UNRWAR schools, Amal said Ali is being deprived of proper sanitation, food, vaccinations and even toys.

“I despair because I cannot provide my son with everything. I was envisioning a different life for him… He couldn’t live in his house and did not get to see his room. He couldn’t experience what a safe family life feels like. There are strikes, destruction and displacement,” Amal said.

Published – October 06, 2025 05:06 pm IST



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Tony Blair | A man of many wars https://artifex.news/article70125784-ece/ Sat, 04 Oct 2025 20:00:00 +0000 https://artifex.news/article70125784-ece/ Read More “Tony Blair | A man of many wars” »

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Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, 72, will play a key role in the transitional body that will govern the post-war Gaza Strip, as per U.S. President Donald Trump’s 20-point “Peace Plan”. Mr. Trump’s plan draws heavily from a proposal that Mr. Blair himself had developed through his think tank, the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change.

In Mr. Blair’s version of the plan, an international body, the Gaza International Transitional Authority (GITA), would govern the Gaza Strip for a certain number of years. In Mr. Trump’s proposal, Article 9 states that Gaza would be “governed under the temporary transitional governance of a technocratic, apolitical Palestinian committee”. This Palestinian committee, however, will report to “a new international transitional body, the “Board of Peace”, which will be headed and chaired by U.S. President Donald J. Trump, with other members and heads of State to be announced, including former Prime Minister Tony Blair.”


Also read | Trump’s Gaza peace plan: What’s in the 20-point peace proposal?

The governance structure comprising a transitional Palestinian committee and the Board of Peace is a rehash of Mr. Blair’s GITA model. Both versions envisage an administrative hierarchy with a wealthy white man (Mr. Blair/Mr. Trump) from the West helming an apex body that would “exercise supreme strategic and political authority”. Palestinian representation comes at the bottom of the managerial ladder. Its remit is restricted to the nitty-gritty of civic governance such as policing, municipal services, and vaccination programmes.

Mr. Trump’s plan also makes it clear that the “framework and funding” for the redevelopment of Gaza will be managed by the Board of Peace. As per leaked excerpts of Mr. Blair’s proposal, this Board would consist of seven to 10 members, with sizeable representation to billionaire investors, alongside Arab/Muslim faces to bestow a semblance of legitimacy.

A major criticism levelled against Mr. Trump’s Gaza plan is that Palestinians were not consulted, which is both true and unsurprising, given its provenance in Mr. Blair’s think tank. However, what has sparked outrage is the return of Mr. Blair as a “Governor” figure. British politician George Galloway posted on social media, “Once it was clear that Satan was fully occupied elsewhere, Tony Blair was the obvious choice to govern Gaza for Trump and Netanyahu.” British and American broadcaster Mehdi Hasan wrote, “Putting Tony Blair in charge of any kind of peace effort in the Middle East [West Asia] is like making the arsonist the head fire-fighter; the burglar the chief detective.” What makes Mr. Blair such a polarising figure, and why is he the chosen one to run Gaza?

Labour leader

Mr. Blair became leader of the Labour Party in 1994 following the untimely death of his predecessor, John Smith. Interestingly, he did so despite the fact that party colleague and rival Gordon Brown was seen as Smith’s natural successor. A gifted politician, Mr. Blair broke with traditional Labour politics — democratic socialism riding on support from trade unions — by following a “third way” that won over the middle classes. Named “New Labour” by analysts, he adopted a centrist, pro-market stance on the economic front, and in a sharp departure from the non-interventionism of “old Labour”, embraced an ‘interventionist’ foreign policy. The shift worked brilliantly. Mr. Blair led Labour to victory in three consecutive parliamentary elections. He became the longest-serving Labour Prime Minister in British history, holding office from 1997 to 2007. Worsening relations with Mr. Brown, however, forced him to resign in June 2007.

As Prime Minister, Mr. Blair’s biggest achievement was brokering the 1998 Good Friday Agreement, which ended decades of brutal sectarian conflict in Northern Ireland. It was a triumph that would become his calling card — and a rather lucrative one — as an expert in conflict resolution. He also put into action the “Blair Doctrine” of “humanitarian interventionism” by sending British troops to Kosovo in 1999 and to Sierra Leone, a former British colony, in 2000. He believed that “the international community” had a right to intervene in the internal affairs of sovereign nations in order to stop human rights abuses.

Ironically, his penchant for interventionism, which won him plaudits in the context of Kosovo and Sierra Leone, would, with his cheerleading of the 2003 Iraq war, lead to his downfall and eventual status as a political pariah. The Chilcot Inquiry into Britain’s involvement in the Iraq war delivered a searing indictment of Mr. Blair’s role as Prime Minister, charging him with deceiving the British people and dragging Britain into an unnecessary, illegal war on false pretexts (there were no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq). It also noted that Mr. Blair sent British troops to a country that posed no threats to British interests, in a move that cost the lives of 179 British citizens, besides thousands of Iraqi lives, displacing millions of Iraqis, and creating long-term instability in the region. It led many, including members of his own party, to brand him a “war criminal”.

Watch: Trump’s Gaza Plan | What’s at stake for India? | Worldview

Immediately after resigning as PM, Mr. Blair was made the “Middle East Envoy” of the Quartet — the U.S., the United Nations, the European Union, and Russia. On paper, his mandate was to help build Palestinian institutions and liaise with all the stakeholders for economic development. But Mr. Blair, a trusted friend of Israel, made no visible effort to either halt the expansion of Israeli settlements or push for a two-state settlement. He failed to win the trust or respect of the Palestinians. Though he flopped as a peacemaker, his personal wealth grew rapidly, through paid consultancies with governments in the region, speaking engagements, and operating as an intermediary for billionaire businessmen.

Larry Ellison, the Zionist billionaire who is in talks to buy TikTok, is a donor to the Tony Blair Institute. Mr. Blair also became an adviser to JP Morgan Chase, a bank that, as reported by journalist Jonathan Cook, benefited massively from at least one major deal brokered by Mr. Blair in his capacity as West Asia envoy. According to Mr. Cook, Mr. Blair got Israel to open up West Bank’s airwaves for a Palestinian cellphone company. But the price negotiated by Mr. Blair is quite revealing: the Palestinians had to stop raising the issue of Israeli war crimes at the UN.

This is the “experience of the region” that Mr. Blair brings to his latest job. It is evident that this experience is viewed favourably by his most important backers, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes), and Mr. Trump, who continues to aid and abet the genocide in Gaza. More than a century after one British politician inaugurated a settler colonial project in Palestine with the Balfour Declaration, Palestinians in Gaza remain mute witnesses as their fate, and their future, is delivered into the hands of another, their new viceroy.

Published – October 05, 2025 01:30 am IST



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Israel troops still operating in Gaza after Trump, hostage family appeals https://artifex.news/article70125997-ece/ Sat, 04 Oct 2025 17:37:00 +0000 https://artifex.news/article70125997-ece/ Read More “Israel troops still operating in Gaza after Trump, hostage family appeals” »

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Israel said Saturday (October 4, 2025) its troops were still operating in Gaza and warned residents not to return, despite calls from the families of Israeli hostages and U.S. President Donald Trump for an immediate halt to the fighting.

Mr. Trump issued the appeal to the key U.S. ally after Palestinian militant group Hamas said it was ready to release all hostages and start talks on the details of his plan to en.d. the nearly two-year war.

“The movement announces its approval for the release of all hostages — living and remains — according to the exchange formula included in President Trump’s proposal,” Hamas said in a Friday statement.

Mr. Trump later posted on Truth Social: “Based on the Statement just issued by Hamas, I believe they are ready for a lasting PEACE. Israel must immediately stop the bombing of Gaza, so that we can get the Hostages out safely and quickly!”

A senior Hamas official said Saturday (October 4, 2025) the group was “ready to begin negotiations immediately to finalise all issues”.

Another Hamas official said Egypt, a mediator in the truce talks, would host a conference for Palestinian factions to decide on Gaza’s post-war future.

Mr. Trump’s proposal calls for a halt to hostilities, the release of hostages within 72 hours, a gradual Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and Hamas’s disarmament.

It also stipulates that Hamas and other factions “not have any role in the governance of Gaza”, with administration of the territory instead taken up by a technocratic body overseen by a post-war transitional authority headed by Mr. Trump himself.

“President Trump’s demand to stop the war immediately is essential to prevent serious and irreversible harm to the hostages,” the Hostages and Missing Families Forum said in a statement.

“We call on Prime Minister (Benjamin) Netanyahu to immediately begin efficient and swift negotiations to bring all our hostages home.”

Heavy bombardment

But despite Mr. Trump’s appeal, Gaza’s civil defence agency said Israel carried out dozens of attacks on Gaza City overnight, with nearby hospitals reporting casualties.

“It was a very violent night, during which the (Israeli army) carried out dozens of air strikes and artillery shelling on Gaza City and other areas in the Strip, despite President Trump’s call to halt the bombing,” spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP.

Mr. Bassal, whose agency is a rescue force which operates under Hamas authority, said 20 homes were destroyed overnight.

The Israeli military said it was operating in Gaza City and urged residents not to return.

“The IDF (Israeli military) troops are still operating in Gaza City, and returning to it is extremely dangerous. For your safety, avoid returning north or approaching areas of IDF troop activity anywhere — including in the southern Gaza Strip,” the military’s Arabic-language spokesman, Colonel Avichay Adraee, said on X.

Israeli media reported that the military had shifted to a defensive posture in Gaza following Trump’s call, though the military did not confirm this to AFP.

Gaza City’s Baptist Hospital said it received casualties from a strike on a home in the city’s Tuffah neighbourhood, including four dead and several wounded.

Further south, Nasser Hospital in Khan Yunis said two children were killed and eight people wounded in a drone strike on a tent in a camp for displaced Gazans.

Jamila al-Sayyid, 24, a resident of Gaza City’s Al-Zeitoun neighbourhood, said “the bombing was intense throughout the night. I was happy when Trump announced a ceasefire, but the warplanes did not stop.”

Hopeful reactions

An AFP journalist in coastal area of Al-Mawasi reported hearing celebratory cries of “Allahu akbar!” (God is the greatest) rise from tents housing Palestinians as news of Hamas’s statement spread.

“This is a day of joy, a great day. The war has been raging for two years,” said Sami Adas, 50, who lives in a tent in Gaza City with his family.

“The best thing is that President Trump himself announced a ceasefire, and Netanyahu will not be able to escape this time… he is the only one who can force Israel to comply and stop the war.”

Gaza peace plan LIVE

The latest developments drew hopeful reactions from world leaders and organisations, with UN rights chief Volker Turk saying it was was a “vital opportunity” to stop bloodshed and misery in the Palestinian territory “once and for all”.

The war was triggered by Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, which resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.

Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed at least 67,074 Palestinians, according to health ministry figures in the Hamas-run territory that the United Nations considers reliable.

Their data does not distinguish between civilians and combatants but indicates that more than half of the dead are women and children.

Published – October 04, 2025 11:07 pm IST



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Israel’s army says it will advance preparations for first phase of Trump’s plan https://artifex.news/article70125059-ece/ Sat, 04 Oct 2025 13:18:00 +0000 https://artifex.news/article70125059-ece/ Read More “Israel’s army says it will advance preparations for first phase of Trump’s plan” »

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Israel’s army said Saturday (October 4, 2025) that it would advance preparations for the first phase of U.S. President Donald Trump’s plan to end the war in Gaza and return all the remaining hostages.

The army said it was instructed by Israel’s leaders to “advance readiness” for the implementation of the plan. An official who was not authorised to speak to the media on the record said that Israel has moved to a defensive-only position in Gaza and will not actively strike. The official said no forces have been removed from the strip.

Also Read: Gaza peace plan LIVE | Updates on October 4, 2025

The announcement came hours after Mr. Trump ordered Israel to stop bombing Gaza once Hamas said it had accepted some elements of his plan. Mr. Trump welcomed the Hamas statement, saying: “I believe they are ready for a lasting PEACE.”

Mr. Trump appears keen to deliver on pledges to end the war and return dozens of hostages ahead of the second anniversary of the attack on Tuesday (October 7, 2025). His proposal unveiled earlier this week has widespread international support and was also endorsed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

On Friday (October 3, 2025), Mr. Netanyahu’s office said Israel was committed to ending the war that began when Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, without addressing potential gaps with the militant group.

Mr. Netanyahu has come under increasing pressure from the international community and Mr. Trump to end the conflict. The official told the AP that Mr. Netanyahu put out the rare late-night statement on the sabbath saying that Israel has started to prepare for Mr. Trump’s plan due to pressure from the U.S. administration.

The official also said that a negotiating team was getting ready to travel, but there was no date specified.

A senior Egyptian official says talks are underway for the release of hostages, as well as hundreds of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli detention. The official, who is involved in the ceasefire negotiations, also said Arab mediators are preparing for a comprehensive dialogue among Palestinians. The talks are aimed at unifying the Palestinian position toward Gaza’s future.

On Saturday (October 4, 2025), the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, the second most powerful militant group in Gaza, said it accepted Hamas’ response to the Mr. Trump plan. The group had previously rejected the proposal days earlier.

Also, on Saturday (October 4, 2025), Gaza’s Health Ministry said that the death toll in the nearly two-year Israel-Hamas war has topped 67,000 Palestinians. The death toll jumped after the ministry said it added more than 700 names to the list whose data had been verified.

Gaza’s Health Ministry does not say how many were civilians or combatants. It says women and children make up around half the dead. The ministry is part of the Hamas-run government, and the UN and many independent experts consider its figures to be the most reliable estimate of wartime casualties.

Progress, but uncertainty ahead

Yet, despite the momentum, a lot of questions remain.

Under the plan, Hamas would release the remaining 48 hostages — around 20 of them believed to be alive — within three days. It would also give up power and disarm.

In return, Israel would halt its offensive and withdraw from much of the territory, release hundreds of Palestinian prisoners and allow an influx of humanitarian aid and eventual reconstruction.

Hamas said it was willing to release the hostages and hand over power to other Palestinians, but that other aspects of the plan require further consultations among Palestinians. Its official statement also didn’t address the issue of Hamas demilitarising, a key part of the deal.

Amir Avivi, a retired Israeli general and chairman of Israel’s Defence and Security Forum, said while Israel can afford to stop firing for a few days in Gaza so the hostages can be released, it will resume its offensive if Hamas doesn’t lay down its arms.

Others say that while Hamas suggests a willingness to negotiate, its position fundamentally remains unchanged.

This “yes, but” rhetoric “simply repackages old demands in softer language,” said Oded Ailam, a researcher at the Jerusalem Centre for Security and Foreign Affairs. The gap between appearance and action is as wide as ever and the rhetorical shift serves more as a smoke screen than a signal of true movement toward resolution, he said.

Meanwhile, protests have erupted across Europe calling for an end to the war. On Saturday (October 4, 2025), tens of thousands of people marched in Barcelona, Spain, with demonstrations expected in Italy and Portugal.

Unclear what it means for Palestinians suffering in Gaza

The next steps for Palestinians in Gaza who are trying to piece together what it means in real terms are also unclear.

“What we want is practical implementation. … We want a truce on the ground,” said Samir Abdel-Hady, in Gaza’s Khan Younis. He worried that talks would break down like they’ve done in the past.

Israeli troops are still laying siege to Gaza City, which is the focus of its latest offensive. On Saturday (October 4, 2025) Israel’s army warned Palestinians against trying to return to the city calling it a “dangerous combat zone”.

Experts determined that Gaza City had slid into famine shortly before Israel launched its major offensive there aimed at occupying it. An estimated 4,00,000 people have fled the city in recent weeks, but hundreds of thousands more have stayed behind.

Families of the hostages are also cautious about being hopeful.

There are concerns from all sides, said Yehuda Cohen, whose son Nimrod is held in Gaza. Hamas and Mr. Netanyahu could sabotage the deal or Mr. Trump could lose interest, he said. Still, he says, if it’s going to happen it will be because of Mr. Trump.

“We’re putting our trust in Mr. Trump, because he’s the only one who’s doing it. … And we want to see him with us until the last step,” he said.

Published – October 04, 2025 06:48 pm IST



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Gaza peace plan LIVE: Israel prepares to implement ‘first stage’ of Trump’s proposal https://artifex.news/article70123913-ece/ Sat, 04 Oct 2025 01:28:00 +0000 https://artifex.news/article70123913-ece/ Read More “Gaza peace plan LIVE: Israel prepares to implement ‘first stage’ of Trump’s proposal” »

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Hamas ready to free hostages but wants further negotiation on Trump’s Gaza plan

Hamas said on Friday (October 3, 2025) it had agreed to release all Israeli hostages, alive or dead, under the terms of U.S. President Donald Trump’s Gaza proposal, and signalled readiness to immediately enter mediated negotiations to discuss the details. 

Hamas reiterated its agreement to hand over the administration of the Gaza Strip to a Palestinian body of independent technocrats. 

Senior Hamas official Mousa Abu Marzouk told Al Jazeera on Friday (October 3, 2025) the group would not disarm before the Israeli occupation ends, adding the issues over Gaza’s future should be discussed within a comprehensive Palestinian national framework which Hamas will be part of.

The official added that Hamas will enter negotiations on all issues related to the group and its arms.

Read the full story below

Hamas says ready to free hostages; Trump urges Israel to halt bombing

Hamas agrees to release Israeli hostages and enter negotiations under Trump’s Gaza proposal, facing deadline for peace plan.



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U.S. President Trump again claims he settled ‘very big’ India-Pakistan conflict https://artifex.news/article70113816-ece/ Tue, 30 Sep 2025 15:07:00 +0000 https://artifex.news/article70113816-ece/ Read More “U.S. President Trump again claims he settled ‘very big’ India-Pakistan conflict” »

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President Donald Trump speaks to a gathering of top U.S. military commanders at Marine Corps Base Quantico on September 30, 2025, in Quantico.
| Photo Credit: AP

United States President Donald Trump on Tuesday (September 29, 2025) again claimed that he settled the “very big” conflict between nuclear-armed India and Pakistan.

“I have settled so many wars since we’re here. We’re here almost nine months, and I’ve settled seven. And yesterday we might have settled the biggest of them all, although I don’t know, Pakistan (and) India was very big, both nuclear powers, I settled that,” Mr. Trump said in his remarks to military leaders in Quantico.

Referring to his plan to end the Gaza conflict, announced on Monday (September 29), Trump said, “We got it, I think settled. We’ll see. Hamas has to agree, and if they don’t, it’s going to be very tough on them, but it is what it is. But all of the Arab nations, Muslim nations, have agreed.” Since May 10, when Trump announced on social media that India and Pakistan had agreed to a “full and immediate” ceasefire after a “long night” of talks mediated by Washington, he has repeated his claim nearly 50 times that he “helped settle” the tensions between India and Pakistan.

In his address to world leaders from the UN podium last week, Trump had repeated his claim that he stopped the conflict between India and Pakistan.

India has been consistently maintaining that the understanding on cessation of hostilities with Pakistan was reached following direct talks between the Directors General of Military Operations of the two militaries.



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Trump’s Gaza peace plan: What’s in the 20-point peace proposal? https://artifex.news/article70110750-ece/ Tue, 30 Sep 2025 00:57:00 +0000 https://artifex.news/article70110750-ece/ Read More “Trump’s Gaza peace plan: What’s in the 20-point peace proposal?” »

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President Donald Trump speaks upon departing a news conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in the State Dining Room of the White House, on Monday, September 29, 2025, in Washington.
| Photo Credit: AP

U.S. President Donald Trump published on Monday (September 29, 2025) a 20-point peace proposal for Gaza that would end the war between Israel and Hamas militants and require the return of all hostages living and dead within 72 hours of a ceasefire. The plan leaves many details for negotiators to hash out and hinges on acceptance by Hamas militants who launched the war against Israel on October 7, 2023. It refers to a redeveloped Gaza as “New Gaza.”

Here are the main elements of the plan that resulted from intense negotiations in recent weeks between Donald Trump and his team, and Israeli and Arab leaders:

Hostages release

According to the plan, if both sides agree to the proposal, the war will end immediately. Israeli forces will withdraw partially to prepare for a hostage release. All military operations will be suspended and battle lines will be frozen in place until conditions are met for the “complete staged withdrawal” of Israeli forces.

Within 72 hours of Israel publicly accepting the proposal, all hostages, alive and dead, will be returned. Once all hostages are released, Israel will free 250 Palestinian prisoners serving life sentences plus 1,700 Gazans arrested after the start of the conflict on October 7, 2023. For every Israeli hostage whose remains are released, Israel will release the remains of 15 dead Gazans.

Amnesty to Hamas member

Once all hostages are freed, members of Hamas “who commit to peaceful coexistence” and give up arms will be given amnesty. Members of Hamas who wish to leave Gaza will be provided with safe passage to receiving countries.

Upon acceptance of this agreement, full aid will be immediately sent into the Gaza Strip, with quantities consistent with the levels mandated under a January 19, 2025, accord. Aid deliveries will proceed without interference from Israel or Hamas through the United Nations and related agencies.

The plan has stated that, a “deradicalised” Gaza will not pose a threat to its neighbors and will be “redeveloped” for the benefit of Gazans.

‘Board of Peace’

The Trump plan envisions a “Board of Peace” of international overseers led by Mr. Trump himself and including former British Prime Minister Tony Blair in an undefined role.

Gaza will be governed under the temporary transitional governance of a “technocratic, apolitical” committee made up of Palestinians and international experts, to be overseen by the Board of Peace.

This group will set the framework and handle the funding for the redevelopment of Gaza until the Palestinian Authority has undergone major reforms.

Trump’s plan on economic development

A Trump economic development plan to rebuild Gaza will be created by convening a panel of experts “who have helped birth some of the thriving modern miracle cities in the Middle East.” A special economic zone will be established with preferred tariff and access rates to be negotiated with participating countries

White House releases Gaza peace plan on Monday, September 29, 2025. Photo credit: X/ @RapidResponse47

White House releases Gaza peace plan on Monday, September 29, 2025. Photo credit: X/ @RapidResponse47

Governing of Gaza

Under the plan, no one will be forced to leave Gaza, which has sustained heavy damage during the war, and those who wish to leave will be free to do so and free to return. “We will encourage people to stay and offer them the opportunity to build a better Gaza,” the plan says.

Hamas and other factions would agree to have no role whatsoever in governing Gaza, directly or indirectly. All military infrastructure, including tunnels and weapons production facilities, will be destroyed. Independent monitors will supervise the demilitarization of Gaza.

“New Gaza will be fully committed to building a prosperous economy and to peaceful coexistence with their neighbors,” according to the plan.

Role of regional partners

Regional partners will work to ensure that Hamas and related factions comply with their obligations and that New Gaza poses no threat. The United States will work with Arab and international partners to develop a temporary International Stabilization Force to immediately deploy in Gaza.

On Palestinian statehood

Israel will not occupy or annex Gaza. The Israeli Defense Forces will progressively hand over the Gaza territory it occupies to the International Stabilisation Force.

The plan is vague on a pathway to Palestinian statehood. It says that while Gaza redevelopment advances and when the Palestinian Authority is reformed, “the conditions may finally be in place for a credible pathway to Palestinian self-determination and statehood, which we recognise as the aspiration of the Palestinian people.”

The United States will establish a dialogue between Israel and the Palestinians to agree on a “political horizon for peaceful and prosperous co-existence.”





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