Rafah

Hamas was studying Tuesday Israel's offer of a 40-day truce in the war in the Gaza Strip in exchange for the release of scores of hostages held since the Oct. 7 attacks.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Monday renewed U.S. opposition to an Israeli offensive on Gaza's southernmost city of Rafah ahead of his trip to Israel.

"We have not yet seen a plan that gives us confidence that civilians can be effectively protected," Blinken told a meeting of the World Economic Forum in Riyadh.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, speaking from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, has urgently called upon the United States to prevent Israel from launching an assault on the border town of Rafah in the Gaza Strip.

Hamas said it was studying on Saturday the latest Israeli counterproposal regarding a potential ceasefire in Gaza, a day after a delegation from mediator Egypt reportedly arrived in Israel in a bid to jump-start stalled negotiations.

Residents reported heavy Israeli fire in central Gaza on Friday, with regional tensions soaring after Iran threatened reprisals over a strike in Syria this month that killed two Iranian generals.

Efforts to broker a ceasefire in the conflict between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip have shown signs of progress, with Egypt reporting advancements in negotiations between the two sides. However, the Israeli army has issued a cautionary statement, emphasizing that the withdrawal from the city of Khan Younis does not mark the end of military operations in the region.

Israeli leaders were preparing Monday for military operations in Gaza's southern city of Rafah, where most of the Palestinian territory's population has fled after six months of fighting.

Talks in Cairo aimed at brokering a truce have made "significant progress", with more negotiations expected in the coming days, Egyptian state-linked outlet Al-Qahera reported Monday.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave the go-ahead Friday for a new round of talks on a Gaza ceasefire, a day after the world's top court ordered Israel to ensure aid reaches desperate civilians.

The southern Gaza Strip came under intense Israeli bombardment overnight, despite international pressure for an immediate ceasefire in the Palestinian territory where famine is looming.

Tensions between the United States and Israel have escalated following the UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. Israel responded by canceling a delegation visit to Washington after the US abstained from voting yesterday. Meanwhile, fighting between the Israeli army and Hamas fighters in the Gaza Strip continued unabated.