The Israeli military says it has killed five more militants in a large-scale operation in the occupied West Bank, including a well-known local commander.
There was no immediate Palestinian confirmation on Thursday of the death of Mohammed Jaber, known as Abu Shujaa, a commander in the Islamic Jihad militant group in the Nur Shams refugee camp on the outskirts of the city of Tulkarem.
He became a hero for many Palestinians earlier this year when he was reported killed in an Israeli operation, only to make a surprise appearance at the funeral of other militants, where he was hoisted onto the shoulders of a cheering crowd.
Israel launched a large-scale operation in the West Bank overnight into Wednesday. Hamas said 10 of its fighters were killed in different locations, and the Palestinian Health Ministry reported an 11th casualty, without saying whether he was a fighter or a civilian.
Violence has surged in the West Bank since Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack out of Gaza ignited the war there.
Here’s the latest:
BEIJING — U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan says the negotiations over a cease-fire in Gaza and the release of hostages have made progress.
Speaking to reporters in Beijing on Thursday, he said “the negotiators are bearing down on the details, meaning that we have advanced the discussions to a point where it’s in the nitty-gritty, and that is a positive sign of progress.”
Officials from the United States, Egypt, Qatar and Israel have held several days of talks trying to hammer out an updated proposal that could be submitted to Hamas. But there has been no sign of a breakthrough, and Israel and Hamas remain far apart on key issues.
U.S. officials have said they are closing in on a deal, while Hamas has accused the United States of adopting unacceptable demands by Israel and trying to force them on the militant group. Officials in Egypt, one of the key mediators, have also expressed skepticism.
“At the end of the day, nothing is done until it’s done. And so we’re just going to keep working at this until we finally get the cease-fire and hostage deal across the line,” Sullivan said.
Brussels — Ireland’s foreign minister says Israel is targeting Palestinian people and not just Hamas with its military campaign in Gaza, and he wants the European Union to review its ties with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government.
“This is a war against Palestinians not just against Hamas. The level of civilian casualties and dead is unconscionable,” Martin said Thursday at a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels. “It’s a war on the population. No point in trying to fudge this.”
He said a recent ruling by the International Court of Justice that Israel’s occupation of Gaza and the West Bank is unlawful obliges the EU to take action.
“It cannot be business as usual,” Martin told reporters. “It is very clear to us that international humanitarian law has been broken.”
Ties between the EU and Israel — which are major trading partners — are governed by a so-called Association Agreement. Ireland and Spain have been pressing their EU partners to examine whether Israel has broken the rules.
