• Qatar’s PM hopes for progress on hostages’ release soon amid Israel-Hamas War.
• The Gulf state is coordinating with the US to lead mediation discussions.
• Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen became enraged by his words and raised his voice.

The prime minister of Qatar announced on Wednesday that some progress had been made in the hostage discussions following Hamas’ October 7 attack in southern Israel that resulted in the kidnapping of over 200 hostages.

During a news conference with his Turkish counterpart, Sheikh Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman al-Thani, who is also the minister of foreign affairs, expressed his hope that progress on captive releases will occur “soon”.

Four captives, including two Israeli women, were freed by Hamas on Monday as a result of Qatar’s open talks with both Israel and Hamas.

The Gulf state is coordinating with the US to lead mediation discussions with Hamas and Israeli officials regarding the release of the hostages as Israel gets ready to launch a land invasion on the enclave.

Hakan Fidan, the foreign minister of Turkey, stated that an Israeli ground assault into Gaza would turn the war there into a slaughter while speaking in Doha.

Fidan said that people endorsing Israel’s conduct were “accomplices to its crimes” under the guise of sympathy.

Israeli strikes in the Gaza Strip have resulted in the martyrdom of over 5,700 Palestinians, the majority of whom were civilians.

The UN said that Tuesday’s death toll, which the ministry estimated to be around 700, was the biggest for a single day since the start of the conflict.

The Hamas authorities announced on Wednesday at least eighty individuals were martyred last night.

The Israeli military bombarded entire neighborhoods within the blockaded area in reaction to the historic Hamas attacks within Israel on October 7 that resulted in at least 1,400 deaths.

The prime minister of Qatar made his remarks following UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ criticism of Israel for breaking international humanitarian law and a senior medical official in the besieged area claiming that Israel was employing new “deadly weapons” against Gaza’s civilian population.

Guterres cautioned against the “collective punishment” of the Palestinian people while stating that there was no justification for the “appalling” violence committed by Hamas on October 7 as she began a crucial UNSC meeting.

Guterres said, “I am deeply concerned about the clear violations of international humanitarian law that we are witnessing in Gaza. Let me be clear: No party to an armed conflict is above international humanitarian law.”

Additionally, Guterres stated that the Palestinian people have been “subjected to 56 years of suffocating occupation” and that the Hamas attacks “did not happen in a vacuum”.

The UN chief called for an urgent truce as Israel targets Palestinian territory in retaliation for Hamas attacks. The crisis is causing significant division inside the Security Council.

Israel expressed outrage over the UN chief’s plea before a high-level Security Council meeting. The Palestinian foreign minister, for his part, condemned what he called inactivity in the conflict, which has claimed hundreds of lives on both sides, the majority of them civilian.

Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen became enraged by his words and raised his voice, gesturing toward Guterres while narrating gruesome stories of civilian casualties—including little children—killed in the bloodiest attack in Israeli history.

Cohen said, “Mr Secretary-General, in what world do you live?”

Cohen claimed Israel gave Gaza to the Palestinians “to the last millimeter” when it withdrew from the territory in 2005, rejecting the idea that the occupation is to blame for the bloodshed.

Israel put a siege on the poor region soon after Hamas came to power, which has been in place ever since. Hamas continues to hold the West Bank.

Gilad Erdan, Israel’s ambassador to the UN, announced on X, the previous Twitter platform, that UN chief Antonio Guterres has “expressed an understanding for terrorism and murder” and called for Guterres’ resignation.

The director general of Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, Mohammad Abu Salmiya, claims to have never seen the kinds of wounds and injuries that are happening in this battle.

According to Abu Salmiya, Israel’s use of “new deadly weapons” against the Gaza population is probably what caused the new kinds of injuries he was describing.

Doctors in Gaza report that after more than 1.4 million people evacuated their homes for makeshift shelters during Israel’s heaviest-ever shelling, patients presenting to hospitals are exhibiting symptoms of diseases brought on by overcrowding and inadequate sanitation.

Every hospital claims that the fuel for its electricity generators is running low, making it harder for them to provide medical care to the sick and injured. A spokeswoman for the health ministry stated that more than 40 medical facilities have stopped operations.

UNRWA, the UN organization for Palestinian refugees, issued a warning in a post on messaging app X that it will suspend operations in Gaza on Wednesday night due to a fuel shortage.

The Israeli military did, however, reiterate that it would prohibit its entry in order to keep Hamas from obtaining fuel.

In the aftermath of the most recent Israeli airstrikes over Gaza early on Wednesday, at least sixteen persons were killed and numerous others injured.

The Israeli raids struck residential areas in Jabalia and Tal al-Hawa in the north, the al-Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza, and Khan Younis in the south.

The arrival of three aid convoys through the Rafah crossing has been welcomed by Guterres, who personally traveled to the crossing between Egypt and Gaza in an effort to allow in help.

However, as the UN agency for Palestinian refugees issued a warning that it might have to cease operations on Wednesday owing to fuel shortage, Guterres described it as “a drop of aid in an ocean of need.”

“To ease epic suffering, make the delivery of aid easier and safer, and facilitate the release of hostages, I reiterate my appeal for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire.”

Israel has refused calls to stop the offensive, claiming that doing so would just give Hamas time to regroup supported by the US.

Queen Rania of Jordan has accused Western officials of a “glaring double standard” for failing to denounce the killings of civilians under Israeli bombardment in Gaza as Israel’s attack on Hamas threatens to destabilize relations between US and Arab leaders.

Speaking to Christiane Amanpour in an interview, Rania said, “The people all around the Middle East, including in Jordan, we are just shocked and disappointed by the world’s reaction to this catastrophe that is unfolding. In the last couple of weeks, we have seen a glaring double standard in the world.”

“When October 7 happened, the world immediately and unequivocally stood by Israel and its right to defend itself and condemned the attack that happened … but what we’re seeing in the last couple of weeks, we’re seeing silence in the world,” she told.

A draft resolution on the situation was vetoed by the US last week because it did not adequately back Israel’s right to respond to Hamas.

State Secretary Antony Blinken requested support from the Security Council for a revised US-led resolution that “incorporates substantive feedback.”

The text called for adherence to international law while defending the “inherent right of all states” to self-defense. Supporting “humanitarian pauses” to allow aid but not a complete ceasefire would be its goal.

Veto-wielding Russia, which is used to being rebuffed by the Security Council for its invasion of Ukraine, swiftly declared that it would be against the US proposal. US regional ally Egypt also criticized the US plan.

According to a social media post made by the UN agency on Wednesday, at least 40 UNRWA establishments have been impacted, and over 600,000 internally displaced persons are seeking safety at 150 UNRWA facilities in Gaza.

“Our shelters are four times over their capacities – many people are sleeping in the streets as current facilities are overwhelmed,” said the organization.

To stay informed about current events, please like our Facebook page https://www.bolnews.com/international/2023/10/israel-hamas-war-qatars-pm-hopes-for-progress-on-hostages-release-soon/amp/.

Follow us on Twitter https://www.bolnews.com/international/2023/10/israel-hamas-war-qatars-pm-hopes-for-progress-on-hostages-release-soon/amp/ and stay updated with the latest news.

Subscribe to our YouTube channel https://www.bolnews.com/international/2023/10/israel-hamas-war-qatars-pm-hopes-for-progress-on-hostages-release-soon/amp/ to watch news from Pakistan and around the world.

Also Read

Mexico forecasts catastrophic harm from Category 5 hurricane

Mexico forecasts catastrophic harm from Category 5 hurricane. It carried maximum sustained...