Gaza war surpasses grim 400-day mark amid escalating Israeli strikes, truce setbacks

Israel's relentless airstrikes on the Gaza Strip have now surpassed 400 days, with no end in sight to the conflict, as Gaza's civil defense agency has reported that at least 30 people were killed in airstrikes on Nov. 10.

Those people included 13 children who died in Israeli strikes on two houses in the north of the Palestinian territory, the defense agency said yesterday, adding that "a number of civilians are still under the rubble."

With the war marking its grim 400-day milestone on Nov. 9, the already tenuous prospect of a ceasefire suffered another setback as Qatar announced its withdrawal from its role as mediator.

The Gulf emirate, which has hosted Hamas's political leadership since 2012 with U.S. blessing, has been involved in months of protracted diplomacy aimed at ending the war.

However, the talks, also mediated by Cairo and Washington, have repeatedly hit problems since a one-week truce in November 2023, the only one so far. Each side has blamed the other for the impasse.

"Qatar notified the parties 10 days ago, during the last attempts to reach an agreement, that it would stall its efforts to mediate between Hamas and Israel if an agreement was not reached in that round," Doha's Foreign Ministry spokesman Majed Al Ansari said in a statement.

"Qatar would resume those efforts... when the parties show their willingness and seriousness," he added.

Al Ansari also called reports concerning the closure Hamas political office in Doha "inaccurate," saying its primary purpose is to be a "channel of communication" between the parties concerned and the channel has contributed to achieving a ceasefire earlier.

International media earlier claimed that Hamas' leaders were no longer welcome in the Gulf country....