
Palestinian children lift placards during a protest calling for an end to the war on Gaza and a return to school ahead of the new academic year, next to a damaged school building in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip.AFP
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 Palestinian group.
“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.
WFP 'pauses' movement
The U.N. food agency said it is “pausing” the movement of all staff in Gaza until further notice after one of its clearly marked vehicles was hit by at least 10 bullets as it was moving toward an Israeli military checkpoint at the Wadi Gaza bridge in the center of the territory.
The World Food Program announcement Wednesday afternoon said the vehicle was struck Tuesday evening despite receiving multiple clearances by Israeli authorities to approach. “None of the employees onboard were physically harmed,” WFP said.
The agency said two armored WFP vehicles were returning from the Karm Abu Salem crossing after escorting a convoy of trucks carrying humanitarian cargo routed to Gaza’s central area.
“Though this is not the first security incident to occur during the war it is the first time that a WFP vehicle has been directly shot at near a checkpoint, despite securing the necessary clearances, as per standard protocol,” the Rome-based agency said.
It called the incident “a stark reminder of the rapidly and ever-shrinking humanitarian space in the Gaza Strip, where increasing violence compromises our ability to deliver life-saving assistance.”
WFP said this critical situation is exacerbated “by restricted access and heightened risks” which has led to a decrease in the amount of food reading Palestinians in desperate need.
U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said the vehicle was struck by Israeli military gunfire, “including with bullets targeting front windows.” He said the incident shows the need for more U.N. armored vehicles, saying the two people inside the WFP vehicle were saved because it was armored.
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