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Gaza ceasefire talks resume as Trump upbeat on deal

Indirect Gaza ceasefire talks resumed Tuesday in Qatar, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited Washington to meet US President Donald Trump, who expressed optimism about a possible breakthrough.Qatar, a mediator along with the United States and Egypt, said the meetings were focused on a “framework” for the talks.”Indirect negotiations are continuing this morning in Doha, with a fourth meeting being held… the discussions are still focused on the mechanisms for implementation, particularly the clauses related to withdrawal and humanitarian aid,” a Palestinian official close to the talks told AFP.”No breakthrough has been achieved so far, and the negotiations are ongoing,” another Palestinian official said.On the ground, five Israeli soldiers were killed in combat in northern Gaza — one of the deadliest days this year for Israeli forces in the Palestinian territory.Israel and Hamas began the latest round of negotiations on Sunday, with representatives seated in separate rooms within the same building.Netanyahu’s trip to Washington is his third visit since Trump’s return to office. On Monday, Trump expressed confidence a deal could be reached.”I don’t think there is a hold-up. I think things are going along very well,” Trump told reporters when asked what was preventing an agreement.Sitting across from Netanyahu at the White House, Trump said Hamas was willing to end the Gaza conflict, now entering its 22nd month.”They want to meet and they want to have that ceasefire,” Trump said when asked if ongoing clashes would derail talks.Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff was set to join the talks in Doha this week.- ‘Suddenly, an explosion’ -An Israeli official accompanying Netanyahu to Washington said the proposal under discussion was “80-90 percent of what Israel wanted.””I believe that with military and political pressure, all the hostages can be returned,” the official told Israeli media.According to Ariel Kahana of Israel Hayom daily, “President Trump and his advisers are currently exerting considerable effort to reach an agreement that would lead to the release of the hostages and could even end the war in Gaza.”However, far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir opposed negotiations with Hamas, saying that “there is no need to negotiate with those who murder our fighters; they must be torn to shreds.”Netanyahu described the loss of five soldiers in Gaza as a “difficult morning” and mourned “our heroic soldiers who risked their lives in the battle to defeat Hamas and free all our hostages.”Israeli military correspondents reported the deaths occurred due to improvised explosive devices near Beit Hanun in northern Gaza.According to the Israeli military, 450 soldiers have been killed in the Gaza military campaign since the start of the ground offensive on October 27, 2023.Gaza’s civil defence agency reported 29 people killed in Israeli strikes across the territory, including three children.Mahmud Bassal, a spokesman for the agency, said nine people were killed in a drone strike on a camp for displaced people in southern Gaza.”I was in front of my tent preparing breakfast for my four children — beans and a bit of dry bread. Suddenly, there was an explosion,” said Shaimaa Al-Shaer, 30, who lives in the camp.Media restrictions in Gaza and difficulties in accessing many areas mean AFP is unable to independently verify the tolls and details provided by the civil defence agency.There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military when contacted by AFP.The war has created dire humanitarian conditions for Gaza’s more than two million people.While Israel has the full backing of the Trump administration, the US leader has increasingly pushed for an end to what he called the “hell” in Gaza and said on Sunday he believes there is a “good chance” of an agreement this coming week.”The utmost priority for the president right now in the Middle East is to end the war in Gaza and to return all of the hostages,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said.- Envoy trip -The US proposal included a 60-day truce, during which Hamas would release 10 living hostages and several bodies in exchange for Palestinians detained by Israel, two Palestinian sources close to the discussions had earlier told AFP.The group was also demanding certain conditions for Israel’s withdrawal, guarantees against a resumption of fighting during negotiations, and the return of the UN-led aid distribution system, they said.Of the 251 hostages taken by Palestinian militants during the October 2023 Hamas attack that triggered the war, 49 are still being held in Gaza, including 27 the Israeli military says are dead.Hamas’s October 2023 attack resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli official figures.Israel’s retaliatory campaign has killed at least 57,523 people in Gaza, also mostly civilians, according to the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry. The UN considers the figures reliable.burs-ser/dv

Gaza civil defence says 29 killed in Israeli strikes

Gaza’s civil defence agency on Tuesday said that 29 people were killed in Israeli strikes across the Palestinian territory devastated by 21 months of war.Among those were nine people killed in a drone strike on a camp for displaced people near Khan Yunis, in southern Gaza, according to civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal.Shaimaa Al-Shaer, 30, a resident of the Al-Sanabel camp, told AFP: “I was in front of my tent preparing breakfast for my four children — beans and a bit of dry bread. Suddenly, there was an explosion.”Smoke and dust filled the area. Debris and stones flew in all directions and hit our tent,” she added.”Four children who were playing in front of the neighbouring tent were injured. I saw people carrying martyrs. We don’t know where death comes from, the bombings continue.” Bassal said that 20 other people, including at least three children and two women, were killed in six other strikes on Tuesday across the Gaza Strip.There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military when contacted by AFP.The military earlier announced that five of its soldiers were killed in northern Gaza and two others were severely wounded.Due to restrictions imposed on media in the Gaza Strip and difficulties accessing the area, AFP is unable to independently verify the death tolls and details shared by the parties involved.The war was triggered by Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas’s unprecedented attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023.The attack resulted in 1,219 deaths on the Israeli side, mostly civilians, according to an AFP count based on official data.Of the 251 people abducted that day, 49 are still hostages in Gaza, including 27 declared dead by the Israeli army.At least 57,523 Gazans, most of them civilians, have been killed in Israel’s retaliatory campaign, according to data from the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry.The figures are deemed reliable by the UN.

Major garment producer Bangladesh seeks deal after 35% US tariff

Bangladesh, the world’s second-biggest garment manufacturer, holds hope to reduce the 35 percent tariff that US President Donald Trump said he will impose, the country’s top commerce official told AFP on Tuesday.Textile and garment production accounts for about 80 percent of exports in Bangladesh and the industry has been rebuilding after it was hit hard …

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Trump says new tariff deadline ‘not 100 percent firm’

US President Donald Trump reignited his trade war by threatening more than a dozen countries with higher tariffs Monday — but then said he may be flexible on his new August deadline to reach deals.Trump sent letters to trading partners including key US allies Japan and South Korea, announcing that duties he had suspended in April would snap back even more steeply in three weeks.Tokyo and Seoul would be hit with 25 percent tariffs on their goods, he wrote. Countries including Indonesia, Bangladesh, Thailand, South Africa and Malaysia were slapped with duties ranging from 25 percent to 40 percent.But in a move that will cause fresh uncertainty in a global economy already unsettled by his tariffs, the 79-year-old once again left the countries room to negotiate a deal.”I would say firm, but not 100 percent firm,” Trump told reporters at a dinner with visiting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu when asked if August 1 deadline was firm.Pressed on whether the letters were his final offer, Trump replied: “I would say final — but if they call with a different offer, and I like it, then we’ll do it.”The US president had unveiled sweeping tariffs on imports on what he called “Liberation Day” on April 2, including a baseline 10 percent tariff on all countries.But he quickly suspended all tariffs above 10 percent for 90 days following turmoil in the markets. They were due to kick back in on Wednesday and Trump sent the letters in advance of that deadline.Trump’s near-identically worded letters to Japanese and South Korean leaders said he would impose 25 percent tariffs as their trading relationships with Washington were “unfortunately, far from Reciprocal.”He warned of further escalation if there was retaliation against the levies.But Trump on Monday also signed an order formally extending the Wednesday deadline, postponing it to August 1.- ‘President’s prerogative’ -The new August date effectively marks a further delay — and Trump’s latest comments threaten to compound the uncertainty over when the deadline really is.According to letters posted to Trump’s Truth Social platform, products from Indonesia will face a 32 percent tariff, while the level for Bangladesh is 35 percent and Thailand, 36 percent.Most countries receiving letters so far had duties similar or unchanged from rates threatened in April, although some like Laos and Cambodia saw notably lower levels.The Trump administration is under pressure to show results after promising “90 deals in 90 days.” So far only two firm deals have emerged, with Britain and Vietnam, plus an agreement to dial back super-high tit-for-tat tariffs with China.Japan’s Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said at a cabinet meeting Monday that the announcement of the 25 percent tariffs is “genuinely regrettable,” local media reported.South Korea’s National Security Adviser Wi Sung-lac meanwhile met with his US counterpart Marco Rubio in Washington, expressing hope that a bilateral summit could soon be held to achieve “mutually beneficial outcomes across key pending issues.”Asked why Trump opted to start with Japan and South Korea, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said: “It’s the president’s prerogative, and those are the countries he chose.”Thailand’s acting prime minister Phumtham Wechayachai said Tuesday he wanted a “better deal” than the 36 percent tariff Trump threatened to impose, adding: “The most important thing is that we maintain good relations with the US.”Malaysia said it was “committed to continuing engagement with the US towards a balanced, mutually beneficial, and comprehensive trade agreement,” its trade ministry said in a statement, after Washington imposed a 25 percent tariff on the Southeast Asian nation.US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Monday that there would be more deals coming up: “We are going to have several announcements in the next 48 hours.”Major US stock indexes fell from records Monday on Trump’s fresh threats. The Nasdaq tumbled 0.9 percent and the S&P 500 lost 0.8 percent.Trump has also threatened an extra 10 percent tariff on countries aligning themselves with the emerging BRICS nations, accusing them of “Anti-American policies” after they slammed his duties at a summit.But partners are still rushing to avert Trump’s tariffs altogether.The European Commission said EU chief Ursula von der Leyen had a “good exchange” with Trump on trade when the pair spoke Sunday.