Pressure mounts for cease-fire deal

CAIRO — Pressure built for a Gaza cease-fire to be agreed at talks that resumed on Thursday in Qatar, aiming to stop the spread of a conflict that has killed 40,000 Palestinians.

A source with knowledge of the talks confirmed to AFP that they had begun in the Qatari capital Doha.

The source did not disclose whether Hamas had dispatched any delegates to the talks.

In a veiled warning to Iran, Hamas and Israel ahead of the meetings, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Qatar's Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said: "No party in the region should take actions that would undermine efforts to reach a deal."

In a telephone call, the two discussed "efforts to calm" regional tensions "and the importance of finalizing a cease-fire in Gaza", it said.

Hamas had said on Wednesday it would not take part in the new round of talks.

However, an official briefed on the talks said mediators are expected to consult with the Palestinian group afterward.

News website Axios reported that Blinken has postponed a trip to the Middle East that had been expected to begin on Tuesday. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters that CIA Director Bill Burns and US Middle East envoy Brett McGurk were due to represent Washington at the talks in Qatar.

Three senior Iranian officials have said that only a cease-fire deal in Gaza would hold Iran back from direct retaliation against Israel for the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh on its soil last month.

The Israeli delegation includes Israel's spy chief David Barnea, head of the domestic security service Ronen Bar and the military's hostages chief Nitzan Alon, a defense official said.

Hamas has voiced skepticism about the talks, accusing Israel of stalling. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar had been the main obstacle to a deal.

"Going to new negotiations allows the occupation to impose new conditions and employ the maze of negotiation to conduct more massacres," senior Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri told Reuters.

"Hamas is committed to the proposal presented to it on July 2, which is based on the UN Security Council resolution and the (US President Joe) Biden speech and the movement is prepared to immediately begin discussion over a mechanism to implement it," said Abu Zuhri.

In Gaza, residents of the southern city of Khan Younis said Israeli forces blew up homes in the east and intensified tank shelling on eastern areas of the city center.

At least 15 Palestinians were killed and dozens of others wounded in intensive Israeli attacks on the city of Khan Younis, Palestinian sources said on Wednesday.

Israeli warplanes and artillery bombed several houses in the Sheikh Nasser and Ma'an areas, Palestinian security sources told Xinhua News Agency.

The Israeli army has yet to comment on the incident.

Agencies - Xinhua