A cargo ship from Turkey bound for India has been hijacked in the Red Sea by Yemen’s Houthi rebels. The ship had about 50 crew members from different countries on board. It is not known whether there were Indians on board the “Galaxy Leader”.
The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed the hijacking, tweeting: “The hijacking of a cargo ship by the Houthis near Yemen in the southern Red Sea is a very serious incident with global consequences. The ship left Turkey bound for India, crewed by citizens of various nationalities, excluding Israelis. It is not an Israeli ship.”
Meanwhile, Hamas militants on Sunday battled Israeli forces trying to enter Gaza’s largest refugee camp, and Israeli airstrikes in the south killed dozens of Palestinians, witnesses said, US media reported on an impending release deal of hostages.
was refused.
The Washington Post said on Sunday that US mediators were close to an agreement between Israel and Hamas to free dozens of women and children held hostage in Gaza in exchange for a five-day pause in their war, which would allow the delivery of emergency aid to Gaza civilians. help stimulate. , citing sources.
The Post had reported on Saturday that a tentative agreement had been reached, which was denied by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US officials, with a White House spokesman saying efforts to reach an agreement continued.
Hamas took about 240 hostages in its deadly cross-border attack on Israeli communities on October 7, prompting Israel to lay siege to Gaza and invade Palestinian territory to eradicate the ruling Islamist group.
Reuters reported on November 15 that Qatari mediators were seeking an agreement between Israel and Hamas to exchange 50 hostages in return for a three-day ceasefire, citing an official. The official said at the time that the general lines had been agreed, but Israel was still negotiating the details.
Sunday is the Qatari Prime
Minister Sheikh Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman al-Thani told a news conference in Doha that the main sticking points standing in the way of an agreement for the release of hostages were now “very minor” – mainly practical and logistical issues.
The delicate hostage talks coincide with Israel’s preparations to expand its offensive against Hamas into the densely populated southern half of Gaza after airstrikes killed dozens of Palestinians, including civilians reportedly sheltering in two schools.
A deal for Hamas to release hostages taken during the Oct. 7 attack on Israel could be the closest yet and would require a multi-day break from fighting in Gaza, U.S. Deputy National Security Adviser Jon said Finer.
31 very sick babies evacuated; Türkiye welcomes cancer patients
The head of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said on social media that the “very sick” babies were evacuated, along with six health workers and 10 relatives of the staff. He said they were taken to a hospital in the southern Gaza city of Rafah. They received urgent care. They were transferred to Palestinian Red Crescent ambulances. A WHO team that visited the hospital on Saturday said 291 patients remained there, including the babies, trauma patients with severely infected wounds and others with spinal injuries unable to move.
In addition, some 351 cancer patients in Gaza will travel to Türkiye to resume treatment, the Hamas-led Health Ministry in Gaza said. The patients were treated at the Turkish-Palestinian Friendship Hospital, the only oncology hospital in Gaza, which was closed shortly after the start of the Israeli ground attack. The ongoing Israeli bombardment has raised the death toll in Gaza to 12,300, including 5,000 children, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.
Israel turns south in hunt for Hamas leaders
Israel said it is entering the “next phase” of the war as attention shifts from the rubble of Gaza City to Khan Younis in the south. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not want to say at a press conference whether he believed that Hamas’s top leaders are hiding there. “We’re going to get them,” he said. “All Hamas leaders are dead men.”
Hamas has lost contact with groups assigned to guard some hostages, a spokesman said. A senior US diplomat said Hamas must free more hostages in return for a significant increase in aid to Gaza and a lull in the fighting. President Joe Biden threatened a US visa ban for “extremists” who attack Palestinians in the West Bank.