U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken says that Israel has accepted a proposal to bridge differences holding up a cease-fire and hostage release in Gaza. He called on Hamas to do the same.
Blinken on Tuesday was on his ninth urgent mission to the Middle East since the war in Gaza began more than 10 months ago. He did not say whether the “bridging proposal” addressed concerns cited by Hamas.
Even if the militant group accepts the proposal, negotiators will spend the coming days working on “clear understandings on implementing the agreement,” Blinken said. He said there are still “complex issues” requiring “hard decisions by the leaders,” without offering specifics.
Blinken is traveling to Egypt and Qatar on Tuesday for further negotiations after meetings in Israel on Monday.
His visit came days after mediators, including the United States, expressed renewed optimism that a deal was close. His trip also came amid fears the conflict could widen into a deeper regional war following the killings of top militant commanders in Lebanon that Iran blamed on Israel.
Here’s the latest:
JERUSALEM — The Israeli military says it has recovered the bodies of six hostages taken in Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack that started the Gaza war.
The military said in a statement Tuesday that its forces recovered the bodies in an overnight operation in southern Gaza. It identified the hostages as Yagev Buchshtab, Alexander Dancyg, Avraham Munder, Yoram Metzger, Nadav Popplewell, and Haim Perry, without saying when or how they died.
The recovery came as the the United States, Egypt and Qatar are trying to mediate a cease-fire agreement between Israel and Hamas that would see the release of scores of hostages held by the militant group.
Hamas is still believed to be holding around 110 hostages captured in the Oct. 7 attack. Israeli authorities estimate around a third of them are dead.
JERUSALEM — Israel’s military said that a barrage of 55 rockets from Lebanon has ignited fires in northern Israel.
The military said Tuesday that only some of the projectiles were intercepted by Israel’s air defense systems, while others fell in open areas. Firefighters were working to contain the blazes.
Lebanon’s Hezbollah militant group said it fired “intense barrages of missiles” at military positions in Israel’s north. Israel said it struck the areas where the missiles were launched in Lebanon.
Israel and Hezbollah have been exchanging fire since Oct. 8, causing widespread damage on both sides of the border and killing civilians and combatants on both sides.
Fears have increased in recent weeks of a larger escalation, with Hezbollah vowing retaliation for an Israeli strike last month in Beirut that killed one of its top commanders.
JERUSALEM — The bodies of two hostages were returned from the Gaza Strip, the communal farm they lived on announced Tuesday.
